Franklin Resources Inc. Decreases Stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Franklin Resources Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 22.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,780,884 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 503,003 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 2.46% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $583,346,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WST. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,656 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,180,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 2,838 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $930,000 after acquiring an additional 712 shares in the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 115,810 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $37,935,000 after purchasing an additional 16,595 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allstate Corp acquired a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $706,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:WST opened at $223.95 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $261.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $297.28. The company has a market cap of $16.19 billion, a PE ratio of 33.47, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $197.01 and a fifty-two week high of $396.75.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.60% and a net margin of 17.03%. The firm had revenue of $748.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $739.59 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.38%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WST. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Bank of America raised their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $390.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $332.50.

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.