Analysts Set West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) Price Target at $349.20

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $349.20.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on West Pharmaceutical Services from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Rothschild Redb raised West Pharmaceutical Services to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Cowen began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

WST opened at $277.33 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $271.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $246.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.87 and a quick ratio of 2.18. The company has a market capitalization of $19.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.08. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 1-year low of $187.43 and a 1-year high of $348.90.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.29. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 16.29% and a return on equity of 18.16%. The company had revenue of $804.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $788.42 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.85 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. West Pharmaceutical Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.060-7.110 EPS. Research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of West Pharmaceutical Services

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 18.1% during the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,636 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,709,000 after buying an additional 1,168 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 23,450 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $5,250,000 after acquiring an additional 2,879 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 15,757 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,528,000 after purchasing an additional 680 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 12.2% in the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 73,796 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $16,521,000 after purchasing an additional 8,039 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 12.3% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 8,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,901,000 after purchasing an additional 929 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

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.