West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) Stock Rating Upgraded by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) was upgraded by stock analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $250.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 16.37% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded West Pharmaceutical Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, West Pharmaceutical Services currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $344.00.

West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 7.9 %

Shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock opened at $214.84 on Friday. 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 has a 12-month low of $197.01 and a 12-month high of $400.88. The company has a market capitalization of $15.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.87, a PEG ratio of 19.31 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $327.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $313.92.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 18.41%. The business had revenue of $748.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $739.59 million. On average, analysts forecast that West Pharmaceutical Services will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Creative Planning raised its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 7.5% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 50,371 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $15,119,000 after acquiring an additional 3,526 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB raised its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 44.6% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 7,195 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,160,000 after purchasing an additional 2,220 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,694 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $809,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 3.3% during the third quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 2,358 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $708,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Financial Group LLC bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the third quarter worth $304,000. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.