Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Boosts Position in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,556 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $11,319,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 17.9% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,574 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,824,000 after buying an additional 1,303 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 65.8% in the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 2,788 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $918,000 after purchasing an additional 1,106 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 158,245 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $52,124,000 after purchasing an additional 7,263 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 58.7% during the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 14,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,619,000 after purchasing an additional 5,188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AXA S.A. boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 12.3% during the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 17,949 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $5,912,000 after buying an additional 1,964 shares in the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $343.89 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $327.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $313.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.02, a PEG ratio of 18.42 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $265.00 and a 52-week high of $413.70.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $746.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $709.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.16 EPS. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on WST shares. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Citigroup initiated coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note 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 five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $430.20.

Insider Activity

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

About West Pharmaceutical Services

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.