West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Upgraded at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has $250.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America raised their target price 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. Citigroup assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $344.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Price Performance

WST stock opened at $214.84 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $327.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $313.97. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market cap of $15.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 19.31 and a beta of 1.01. West Pharmaceutical Services has a 52-week low of $197.01 and a 52-week high of $400.88.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $739.59 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 18.41% and a net margin of 17.37%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.39%. West Pharmaceutical Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.46%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On West Pharmaceutical Services

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% 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.