Trillium Asset Management LLC Sells 784 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Trillium Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 34.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,518 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 784 shares during the period. Trillium Asset Management LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $497,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,449,811 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,130,020,000 after acquiring an additional 203,198 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,214,448 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $964,850,000 after purchasing an additional 10,060 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,740,183 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $520,569,000 after purchasing an additional 12,850 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,074.0% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 689,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $225,851,000 after buying an additional 676,167 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 683,350 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $205,114,000 after buying an additional 122,361 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

NYSE:WST opened at $230.14 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.40, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $197.01 and a twelve month high of $400.88. The company has a fifty day moving average of $279.03 and a 200-day moving average of $301.60. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $748.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 18.60%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.37%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $332.50.

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.