Independent Advisor Alliance Boosts Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 23.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,081 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 389 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $625,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WST. LGT Group Foundation purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the second quarter worth about $68,854,000. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at about $64,196,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 29.7% during the third quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 444,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $133,271,000 after acquiring an additional 101,710 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 12.7% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 401,026 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $132,095,000 after acquiring an additional 45,208 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 25.0% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 207,564 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $68,370,000 after acquiring an additional 41,454 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

Shares of WST opened at $323.32 on Thursday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $265.00 and a 1-year high of $413.70. The stock has a market cap of $23.41 billion, a PE ratio of 47.97, a P/E/G ratio of 24.15 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $307.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $313.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 3.00 and a quick ratio of 2.23.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $709.62 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.16 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.67 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total value of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $388,931.20. The trade was a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.