Signaturefd LLC Reduces Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Signaturefd LLC lessened its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 892 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 46 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $268,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of WST. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 60.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,837 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,055,000 after purchasing an additional 2,201 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the first quarter worth $398,000. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.7% during the first quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 38,070 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $15,065,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.5% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 191,469 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $75,766,000 after acquiring an additional 2,759 shares during the period. Finally, Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV grew its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 8.1% during the first quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 13,320 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $5,271,000 after buying an additional 993 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $307.92 on Friday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $265.00 and a 52-week high of $413.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.62, a PEG ratio of 10.21 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $300.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $321.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.34. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 19.17%. The business had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $709.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.27%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.08%.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 1,029 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $308,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $443,400. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 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.