National Pension Service Boosts Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. $WST

National Pension Service boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 3,080.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 126,271 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 122,301 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $45,331,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WST. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 486.9% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 18,868 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $6,774,000 after purchasing an additional 15,653 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.9% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,760 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $991,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5.6% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 20,649 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $7,413,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.5% during the second quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 2,501 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $898,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Nykredit A S bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the second quarter valued at $8,780,000. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Annette Favorite sold 8,135 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.81, for a total value of $2,772,489.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 16,845 shares in the company, valued at $5,740,944.45. This trade represents a 32.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on WST. Zacks Research lowered West Pharmaceutical Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on West Pharmaceutical Services from $325.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Barclays raised West Pharmaceutical Services from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $310.00 to $400.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Monday, June 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $373.85.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of WST stock opened at $345.49 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.24, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.14. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $348.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $310.28. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $223.83 and a 1 year high of $386.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 2.12.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $872.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $839.98 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 16.98%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.140-2.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.850-9.050 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 29th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is 11.27%.

West Pharmaceutical Services Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc (NYSE: WST) develops and manufactures components and systems used to package, contain and deliver injectable medicines and other healthcare products. Its customers include pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device companies, which use West products in drug administration and medical applications.

The company’s offerings include elastomer components such as stoppers, plungers and seals; syringe and cartridge components; vial and container closure systems; and specialized delivery systems for injectable and other complex medicines.