West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Shares Sold by Hancock Whitney Corp

Hancock Whitney Corp lowered its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 93.7% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,603 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 23,805 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $481,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WST. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter worth $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 322.7% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 332.1% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 242 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter worth $82,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total value of $218,211.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,253 shares in the company, valued at $388,931.20. The trade was a 35.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST stock opened at $319.35 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $265.00 and a 12 month high of $413.70. The company has a market cap of $23.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.38, a PEG ratio of 24.15 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $307.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $313.59.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.35. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The company had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $709.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.16 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This is an increase from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.46%.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells containment and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in two segments, Proprietary Products and Contract-Manufactured Products.