Rockland Trust Co. Sells 76,903 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Rockland Trust Co. trimmed its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 92.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 76,903 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $1,696,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WST. Norges Bank acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at approximately $200,813,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 22.2% during the third quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,770,920 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $726,895,000 after purchasing an additional 503,601 shares during the last quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 3rd quarter valued at $123,667,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 420.1% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 545,879 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $142,949,000 after purchasing an additional 440,929 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,704,948 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,545,899,000 after purchasing an additional 388,144 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 2.4%

NYSE WST opened at $250.95 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $18.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.17. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.43 and a twelve month high of $322.34. The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 3.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business’s fifty day moving average is $243.09 and its 200 day moving average is $261.33.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $805.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $795.70 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 17.90% and a net margin of 16.06%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.850-8.200 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 17th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to purchase up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 29th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on WST shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 20th. Evercore decreased their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $390.00 to $320.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, January 9th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $295.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, February 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $314.56.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.