In the past week, WST stock has gone down by -2.42%, with a monthly decline of -5.16% and a quarterly surge of 3.94%. The volatility ratio for the week is 3.48%, and the volatility levels for the last 30 days are 2.21% for West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. The simple moving average for the past 20 days is -4.61% for WST’s stock, with a -0.86% simple moving average for the past 200 days.
Is It Worth Investing in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE: WST) Right Now?
West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE: WST) has a higher price-to-earnings ratio of 48.60x compared to its average ratio, The 36-month beta value for WST is at 1.03. Analysts have varying views on the stock, with 1 analysts rating it as a “buy,” 3 rating it as “overweight,” 2 as “hold,” and 1 as “sell.”
The public float for WST is 72.80M, and currently, shorts hold a 1.34% of that float. The average trading volume for WST on April 26, 2024 was 538.06K shares.
WST) stock’s latest price update
The stock price of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE: WST) has plunged by -4.55 when compared to previous closing price of 385.73, but the company has seen a -2.42% decline in its stock price over the last five trading sessions. Seeking Alpha reported 2024-04-25 that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST ) Q1 2024 Earnings Conference Call April 25, 2024 9:00 AM ET Company Participants Quintin Lai – Vice President, Strategy and Investor Relations Eric Green – President and Chief Executive Officer Bernard Birkett – Senior Vice President, Chief Financial and Operations Officer Conference Call Participants Matt Larew – William Blair Jacob Johnson – Stephens Paul Knight – KeyBanc Michael Ryskin – Bank of America Justin Bowers – Deutsche Bank David Windley – Jefferies Larry Solow – CJS Securities Operator Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to West Pharmaceutical Services First Quarter 2024 Earnings Conference Call.
Analysts’ Opinion of WST
Many brokerage firms have already submitted their reports for WST stocks, with Jefferies repeating the rating for WST by listing it as a “Buy.” The predicted price for WST in the upcoming period, according to Jefferies is $536 based on the research report published on February 07, 2024 of the current year 2024.
BofA Securities, on the other hand, stated in their research note that they expect to see WST reach a price target of $405, previously predicting the price at $390. The rating they have provided for WST stocks is “Buy” according to the report published on June 16th, 2023.
Stephens gave a rating of “Overweight” to WST, setting the target price at $400 in the report published on April 11th of the previous year.
WST Trading at -2.68% from the 50-Day Moving Average
After a stumble in the market that brought WST to its low price for the period of the last 52 weeks, the company was unable to rebound, for now settling with -11.44% of loss for the given period.
Volatility was left at 2.21%, however, over the last 30 days, the volatility rate increased by 3.48%, as shares sank -6.58% for the moving average over the last 20 days. Over the last 50 days, in opposition, the stock is trading -7.63% lower at present.
During the last 5 trading sessions, WST fell by -2.42%, which changed the moving average for the period of 200-days by -1.91% in comparison to the 20-day moving average, which settled at $384.68. In addition, West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. saw 4.56% in overturn over a single year, with a tendency to cut further gains.
Insider Trading
Reports are indicating that there were more than several insider trading activities at WST starting from Winters Chad, who sale 815 shares at the price of $358.82 back on Mar 11 ’24. After this action, Winters Chad now owns 1,309 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc., valued at $292,436 using the latest closing price.
Witherspoon Charles, the VP & Treasurer of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc., sale 2,019 shares at $358.62 during a trade that took place back on Feb 28 ’24, which means that Witherspoon Charles is holding 1,979 shares at $724,061 based on the most recent closing price.
Stock Fundamentals for WST
Current profitability levels for the company are sitting at:
- 0.23 for the present operating margin
- 0.38 for the gross margin
The net margin for West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. stands at 0.2. The total capital return value is set at 0.21. Equity return is now at value 20.84, with 15.94 for asset returns.
Based on West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (WST), the company’s capital structure generated 0.1 points at debt to capital in total, while cash flow to debt ratio is standing at 2.51. The debt to equity ratio resting at 0.11. The interest coverage ratio of the stock is 75.11.
Currently, EBITDA for the company is 875.7 million with net debt to EBITDA at -0.65. When we switch over and look at the enterprise to sales, we see a ratio of 8.95. The receivables turnover for the company is 5.76for trailing twelve months and the total asset turnover is 0.77. The liquidity ratio also appears to be rather interesting for investors as it stands at 2.88.
Conclusion
In conclusion, West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (WST) has had a mixed performance lately. Opinion on the stock among analysts is mixed, with some giving it a “buy” rating and others a “hold”. It’s important to note that the stock is currently trading at a significant distance from its 50-day moving average and its 52-week high.
