Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 2,903 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 21.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 16,528 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 2,903 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $4,548,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.7% during the third quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.5% during the third quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $333,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 410 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 2.2% during the third quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $586,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Faithward Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 0.4% during the third quarter. Faithward Advisors LLC now owns 11,855 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,110,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of WST stock opened at $319.98 on Tuesday. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $206.80 and a 12 month high of $330.88. The stock has a market cap of $22.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $292.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $269.75.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.45. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.85% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The business had revenue of $844.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $779.68 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.45 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.750 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.120 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 17th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to repurchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WST has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, April 24th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $360.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $295.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Zacks Research raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, February 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $331.91.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Annette F. Favorite sold 2,817 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.20, for a total transaction of $859,748.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 16,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,135,905.60. This represents a 14.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Chad Winters sold 896 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.67, for a total transaction of $269,400.32. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $457,920.41. This represents a 37.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a global developer and manufacturer of components, systems and services that enable the containment and delivery of injectable drugs. The company focuses on high-quality packaging and delivery solutions for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, producing primary drug packaging components and specialized drug delivery devices used for vaccines, biologics and other injectable therapies. West is known for its elastomeric closures, seals and polymer components that maintain sterility and compatibility with sensitive drug formulations.

In addition to component manufacturing, West provides engineered delivery systems and support services across the product lifecycle.