First Bank & Trust Makes New $304,000 Investment in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

First Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,012 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $304,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 322.7% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 820.0% in the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 138 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% during the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at West Pharmaceutical Services

In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 1,029 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $308,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $443,400. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Down 6.9 %

West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $307.92 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $300.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $321.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.34. The company has a market cap of $22.43 billion, a PE ratio of 40.62, a PEG ratio of 10.21 and a beta of 1.01. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $265.00 and a fifty-two week high of $413.70.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.34. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 19.17% and a net margin of 18.25%. The firm had revenue of $746.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $709.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. West Pharmaceutical Services’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.42 EPS for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.27%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This is a boost from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.08%.

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.