Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Cuts Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,074 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 121 shares during the quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WST. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 322.7% in the second 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 last quarter. ORG Partners LLC boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 820.0% in the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 138 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in West Pharmaceutical Services by 5,633.3% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Up 0.8 %

WST opened at $310.49 on Tuesday. 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 $22.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.07, a PEG ratio of 23.68 and a beta of 1.01. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $265.00 and a twelve month high of $413.70. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $300.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $320.76.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $709.62 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.16 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.55 earnings per share for the current year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.27%. This is a positive change from West Pharmaceutical Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. West Pharmaceutical Services’s payout ratio is 11.87%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 1,029 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $308,700.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $443,400. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 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.