Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 8,460 Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Victory Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 14.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 50,129 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 8,460 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $15,047,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $217,000. North Growth Management Ltd. increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. North Growth Management Ltd. now owns 19,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $5,559,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $221,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 13.5% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,092 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $928,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 320 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

Shares of WST stock opened at $304.08 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $306.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $314.99. 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 $22.02 billion, a PE ratio of 45.12, a P/E/G ratio of 23.78 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.35. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The firm had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $709.62 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.16 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.66 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.28%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is currently 12.46%.

Insider Transactions at West Pharmaceutical Services

In related news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 703 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.40, for a total transaction of $218,211.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $388,931.20. The trade was a 35.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.53% 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.