West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (WST) To Go Ex-Dividend on November 10th

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) announced a quarterly dividend on Monday, October 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share by the medical instruments supplier on Wednesday, November 18th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. This is a 18.2% increase from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22.

West Pharmaceutical Services has raised its dividend by an average of 0.1% annually over the last three years. West Pharmaceutical Services has a dividend payout ratio of 12.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect West Pharmaceutical Services to earn $9.90 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.88 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 8.9%.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST stock opened at $388.65 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.82, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $359.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $334.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.35 billion, a PE ratio of 49.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.13. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 12 month low of $223.83 and a 12 month high of $389.75.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $872.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $839.98 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 16.98%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.140-2.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.850-9.050 EPS. Analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 8.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Annette Favorite sold 8,135 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.81, for a total transaction of $2,772,489.35. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 16,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,740,944.45. The trade was a 32.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 15,659 shares of company stock valued at $5,443,749 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,387,990,000. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.7% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,348,698 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,202,183,000 after buying an additional 54,920 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $733,733,000. Generation Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $728,168,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 85.4% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 644,065 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $161,428,000 after acquiring an additional 296,639 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc develops and manufactures components and delivery systems used in the administration and packaging of injectable medicines and other healthcare products. Its offerings include elastomer closures, seals, syringe components, drug-delivery systems, and other specialized packaging components designed to support the safety, quality, and performance of pharmaceutical products.

The company also provides contract-manufacturing services for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical-device customers.