Is West Pharmaceutical Stock a Good Investment?

West Pharmaceutical Investment Advice

  WST
To provide specific investment advice or recommendations on West Pharmaceutical Services stock, we recommend investors consider the following general factors when evaluating West Pharmaceutical Services. This will help you to make an informed decision on whether to include West Pharmaceutical in one of your diversified portfolios:
  • Examine West Pharmaceutical's financial health by looking at its balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement. Analyze key financial ratios, such as Price-to-Earnings (P/E), Price-to-Sales (P/S), and Price-to-Book (P/B), to determine whether the stock is fairly valued or over/undervalued.
  • Research West Pharmaceutical's leadership team and their track record. Good management can help West Pharmaceutical navigate difficult times and make strategic decisions that benefit shareholders and increases its net worth.
  • Consider the overall health of the Health Care Equipment & Supplies space and any emerging trends that could impact West Pharmaceutical's business and its evolving consumer preferences.
  • Compare West Pharmaceutical's performance and market position to its competitors. Analyze how West Pharmaceutical is positioned in terms of product offerings, innovation, and market share.
  • Check if West Pharmaceutical pays a dividend and its dividend yield and payout ratio.
  • Review what financial analysts are saying about West Pharmaceutical's stock and their price targets. However, remember that analysts' opinions can vary, and their predictions may not always be accurate.
It's important to note that investing in West Pharmaceutical Services stock, carries risks, and you should carefully consider your investment goals and risk tolerance before making any investment decisions. Also, remember that it's important for investors to have a long-term perspective and a well-diversified portfolio to manage the impact of stock market volatility on their investments. Below is a detailed guide on how to decide if West Pharmaceutical Services is a good investment.
 
Sell
 
Buy
Strong Sell
Macroaxis provides trade recommendation on West Pharmaceutical to complement and cross-verify current analyst consensus on West Pharmaceutical. Our trade advice engine determines the company's potential to grow exclusively from the perspective of an investor's current risk tolerance and investing horizon. To make sure West Pharmaceutical Services is not overpriced, please check out all West Pharmaceutical fundamentals, including its book value per share, and the relationship between the net income and number of employees . Given that West Pharmaceutical has a price to earning of 40.71 X, we strongly advise you to confirm West Pharmaceutical market performance and probability of bankruptcy to ensure the company can sustain itself in the current economic cycle given your prevalent risk tolerance and investing horizon.

Market Performance

Very WeakDetails

Volatility

Very steadyDetails

Hype Condition

Over hypedDetails

Current Valuation

UndervaluedDetails

Odds Of Distress

Very LowDetails

Economic Sensitivity

Moves slightly opposite to the marketDetails

Investor Sentiment

AlarmedDetails

Analyst Consensus

Strong BuyDetails

Financial Strenth (F Score)

HealthyDetails

Financial Leverage

Not RatedDetails

Reporting Quality (M-Score)

Unlikely ManipulatorDetails

Examine West Pharmaceutical Stock

Researching West Pharmaceutical's stock involves analyzing various aspects of the company and its industry to make an informed investment decision. The key areas to focus on are fundamentals, business model and competitive advantage. It is also important to analyze trends in revenue, net income, and cash flow, as well as key financial ratios, such as price-to-earnings (P/E), price-to-sales (P/S), and debt-to-equity (D/E). About 97.0% of the company outstanding shares are owned by institutional investors. The company recorded earning per share (EPS) of 6.69. West Pharmaceutical last dividend was issued on the 7th of February 2025. The entity had 2:1 split on the 27th of September 2013.
To determine if West Pharmaceutical is a good investment, evaluating the company's potential for future growth is also very important. This may include expanding into new markets, launching new products or services, or improving operational efficiency. Companies with strong growth prospects can be more attractive investments. This aspect of the research should be conducted in the context of the overall market and industry in which the company operates and should include an analysis of growth potential, competitive landscape, and any regulatory or economic factors that could impact the business. Some of the essential points regarding West Pharmaceutical's research are outlined below:
West Pharmaceutical generated a negative expected return over the last 90 days
West Pharmaceutical has high historical volatility and very poor performance
Over 97.0% of the company outstanding shares are owned by institutional investors
On 11th of February 2025 West Pharmaceutical paid $ 0.21 per share dividend to its current shareholders
Latest headline from benzinga.com: Top 2 Health Care Stocks That May Rocket Higher This Month

West Pharmaceutical Quarterly Good Will

106.1 Million

West Pharmaceutical uses earnings reports to provide investors with an update of all three financial statements, including the income statement, the balance sheet, and the cash flow statement. Therefore, it is also crucial when considering investing in West Pharmaceutical Services. Every quarterly earnings report provides investors with an overview of sales, expenses, and net income for the most recent period. It also may provide a comparison to West Pharmaceutical's previous reporting period. The quarterly earnings reports are usually disseminated to the public via Form 10-Q, which is a legal document filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission every quarter.
15th of February 2024
Upcoming Quarterly Report
View
25th of April 2024
Next Financial Report
View
31st of December 2023
Next Fiscal Quarter End
View
15th of February 2024
Next Fiscal Year End
View
30th of September 2023
Last Quarter Report
View
31st of December 2022
Last Financial Announcement
View
Earnings surprises can significantly impact West Pharmaceutical's stock price both in the short term and over time. Negative earnings surprises usually result in a price decline. However, it has been seen that positive earnings surprises lead to an immediate rise in a stock's price and a gradual increase over time. This is why we often hear news about some companies beating earning projections. Financial analysts spend a large amount of time predicting earnings per share (EPS) along with other important future indicators. Many analysts use forecasting models, management guidance, and additional fundamental information to derive an EPS estimate. Below are the table of largest EPS Surprises West Pharmaceutical's investors have experienced.
Reported
Fiscal Date
Estimated EPS
Reported EPS
Surprise
2004-10-19
2004-09-300.10.110.0110 
2003-10-21
2003-09-300.090.08-0.0111 
2002-10-24
2002-09-300.050.060.0120 
1996-10-16
1996-09-300.090.10.0111 
1994-04-21
1994-03-310.10.110.0110 
1994-02-17
1993-12-310.080.090.0112 
1993-10-21
1993-09-300.070.080.0114 
2006-02-21
2005-12-310.180.20.0211 

West Pharmaceutical Target Price Consensus

West target price is determined by taking all analyst projections and averaging them out. There is no one specific way to measure analysts' performance other than comparing it to past results via a very sophisticated attribution analysis. West Pharmaceutical's target price projections below should be used in combination with other traditional price prediction techniques such as stock price forecasting, investor sentiment analysis, technical analysis, earnings estimate, and various momentum models.
   12  Strong Buy
Most West analysts issue ratings four times a year, at intervals of three months. Ratings are usually accompanied by a target price to help potential investors understand West stock's fair price compared to its market value. Analysts arrive at stock ratings after researching the public financial statements of West Pharmaceutical, talking to its executives and customers, or listening to those companies' conference calls.
Macroaxis Advice   Exposure   Valuation

West Pharmaceutical Target Price Projection

West Pharmaceutical's current and average target prices are 220.15 and 379.85, respectively. The current price of West Pharmaceutical is the price at which West Pharmaceutical Services is currently trading. On the other hand, West Pharmaceutical's target price is what analysts think the stock is worth or could sell for in the future. The more significant the discrepancy between the two prices, the more it stimulates investors to act.

Current Price

West Pharmaceutical Market Quote on 25th of February 2025

Low Price218.8Odds
High Price223.79Odds

220.15

Target Price

Analyst Consensus On West Pharmaceutical Target Price

Low Estimate345.66Odds
High Estimate421.63Odds

379.85

Historical Lowest Forecast  345.66 Target Price  379.85 Highest Forecast  421.63
Note that most analysts generally publish their price targets in research reports on specific companies, along with recommendations for the company's stock.Although price targets are often quoted in the financial news media, there could be a delay between the publication of the latest analyst outlook on West Pharmaceutical Services and the information provided on this page.

West Pharmaceutical Analyst Ratings

West Pharmaceutical's analyst stock recommendations are determined by taking an average estimate of all analysts we track and classifying them as Strong Buy, Buy, Hold, Strong Sell, or Sell. Ratings generally communicate what analysts sense about West Pharmaceutical stock, and they use a lot of effort and time to analyze it and arrive at a rating. That suggests that analyst recommendations are the outcome of an objective and thorough examination of West Pharmaceutical's financials, market performance, and future outlook by experienced professionals. West Pharmaceutical's historical ratings below, therefore, can serve as a valuable tool for investors.

Know West Pharmaceutical's Top Institutional Investors

Have you ever been surprised when a price of an equity instrument such as West Pharmaceutical is soaring high without any particular reason? This is usually happening because many institutional investors are aggressively trading West Pharmaceutical Services backward and forwards among themselves. West Pharmaceutical's institutional investor refers to the entity that pools money to purchase West Pharmaceutical's securities or originate loans. Institutional investors include commercial and private banks, credit unions, insurance companies, pension funds, hedge funds, endowments, and mutual funds. Operating companies that invest excess capital in these types of assets may also be included in the term and may influence corporate governance by exercising voting rights in their investments.
Shares
Fmr Inc2024-12-31
1.1 M
Morgan Stanley - Brokerage Accounts2024-12-31
M
Norges Bank2024-12-31
887.2 K
Findlay Park Partners Llp2024-12-31
834.7 K
Ubs Asset Mgmt Americas Inc2024-12-31
790.7 K
Northern Trust Corp2024-12-31
768.8 K
Amvescap Plc.2024-12-31
755.2 K
T. Rowe Price Investment Management,inc.2024-12-31
733.3 K
Van Eck Associates Corporation2024-12-31
689.5 K
Vanguard Group Inc2024-12-31
M
Blackrock Inc2024-12-31
7.5 M
Note, although West Pharmaceutical's institutional investors appear to be way more sophisticated than retail investors, it remains unclear if professional active investment managers can reliably enhance risk-adjusted returns by an amount that exceeds fees and expenses.

West Pharmaceutical's market capitalization trends

The company currently falls under 'Large-Cap' category with a total capitalization of 15.98 B.

Market Cap

236.46 Million

West Pharmaceutical's profitablity analysis

Last ReportedProjected for Next Year
Return On Tangible Assets 0.14  0.15 
Return On Capital Employed 0.18  0.10 
Return On Assets 0.14  0.14 
Return On Equity 0.18  0.10 
The company has Net Profit Margin of 0.17 %, which implies that it may need a different competitive strategy as even a very small decline in it revenue may erase profits and result in a net loss. This is way below average. In the same way, it shows Net Operating Margin of 0.23 %, which entails that for every 100 dollars of revenue, it generated $0.23 of operating income.
Determining West Pharmaceutical's profitability involves analyzing its financial statements and using various financial metrics to determine if West Pharmaceutical is a good buy. For example, gross profit margin measures West Pharmaceutical's profitability after accounting for the cost of goods sold, while net profit margin measures profitability after accounting for all expenses. Other important metrics include return on assets, return on equity, and free cash flow. By reviewing multiple sources and metrics, you can gain a complete picture of West Pharmaceutical's profitability and make more informed investment decisions.
Please note, the imprecision that can be found in West Pharmaceutical's accounting process means that the reasonable investor should take a skeptical approach toward the financial statement analysis of West Pharmaceutical Services. Check West Pharmaceutical's Beneish M Score to see the likelihood of West Pharmaceutical's management manipulating its earnings.

Evaluate West Pharmaceutical's management efficiency

West Pharmaceutical has Return on Asset of 0.0993 % which means that on every $100 spent on assets, it made $0.0993 of profit. This is way below average. In the same way, it shows a return on shareholders' equity (ROE) of 0.1771 %, implying that it generated $0.1771 on every 100 dollars invested. West Pharmaceutical's management efficiency ratios could be used to measure how well West Pharmaceutical manages its routine affairs as well as how well it operates its assets and liabilities. At this time, West Pharmaceutical's Return On Tangible Assets are comparatively stable compared to the past year. Return On Assets is likely to gain to 0.14 in 2025, whereas Return On Capital Employed is likely to drop 0.10 in 2025. At this time, West Pharmaceutical's Total Current Liabilities is comparatively stable compared to the past year. Liabilities And Stockholders Equity is likely to gain to about 3.8 B in 2025, whereas Non Current Liabilities Total is likely to drop slightly above 311.4 M in 2025.
Last ReportedProjected for Next Year
Book Value Per Share 36.74  38.58 
Tangible Book Value Per Share 35.14  36.90 
Enterprise Value Over EBITDA 31.90  33.49 
Price Book Value Ratio 8.91  9.36 
Enterprise Value Multiple 31.90  33.49 
Price Fair Value 8.91  9.36 
Enterprise Value374.8 M252.4 M
Leadership at West Pharmaceutical emphasizes sustainable growth and financial prudence. Our analysis evaluates how these priorities impact the stock's performance in the market.
Dividend Yield
0.004
Forward Dividend Yield
0.004
Forward Dividend Rate
0.84
Beta
1.003

Basic technical analysis of West Stock

As of the 25th of February, West Pharmaceutical maintains the Standard Deviation of 5.1, market risk adjusted performance of 0.5477, and Mean Deviation of 1.94. Relative to fundamental indicators, the technical analysis model lets you check existing technical drivers of West Pharmaceutical Services, as well as the relationship between them.

West Pharmaceutical's insider trading activities

Some recent studies suggest that insider trading raises the cost of capital for securities issuers and decreases overall economic growth. Trading by specific West Pharmaceutical insiders, such as employees or executives, is commonly permitted as long as it does not rely on West Pharmaceutical's material information that is not in the public domain. Local jurisdictions usually require such trading to be reported in order to monitor insider transactions. In many U.S. states, trading conducted by corporate officers, key employees, directors, or significant shareholders must be reported to the regulator or publicly disclosed, usually within a few business days of the trade. In these cases West Pharmaceutical insiders are required to file a Form 4 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) when buying or selling shares of their own companies.

West Pharmaceutical's Outstanding Corporate Bonds

West Pharmaceutical issues bonds to finance its operations. Corporate bonds make up one of the largest components of the U.S. bond market, which is considered the world's largest securities market. West Pharmaceutical uses the proceeds from bond sales for a wide variety of purposes, including financing ongoing mergers and acquisitions, buying new equipment, investing in research and development, buying back their own stock, paying dividends to shareholders, and even refinancing existing debt. Most West bonds can be classified according to their maturity, which is the date when West Pharmaceutical Services has to pay back the principal to investors. Maturities can be short-term, medium-term, or long-term (more than ten years). Longer-term bonds usually offer higher interest rates but may entail additional risks.

Understand West Pharmaceutical's technical and predictive indicators

Using predictive indicators to make investment decisions involves analyzing West Pharmaceutical's various financial and market-based factors to help forecast future trends and identify investment opportunities. Select the indicators that are most relevant to your investment strategy. Each indicator has its own strengths and weaknesses, so it's essential to combine multiple indicators to get a more comprehensive view of the market and reduce the risk of making poor decisions based on limited data.

Consider West Pharmaceutical's intraday indicators

West Pharmaceutical intraday indicators are useful technical analysis tools used by many experienced traders. Just like the conventional technical analysis, daily indicators help intraday investors to analyze the price movement with the timing of West Pharmaceutical stock daily movement. By combining multiple daily indicators into a single trading strategy, you can limit your risk while still earning strong returns on your managed positions.

West Pharmaceutical Corporate Filings

F4
20th of February 2025
The report filed by a party regarding the acquisition or disposition of a company's common stock, as well as derivative securities such as options, warrants, and convertible securities
ViewVerify
10K
18th of February 2025
Annual report required by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of a company financial performance
ViewVerify
8K
13th of February 2025
Report filed with the SEC to announce major events that shareholders should know about
ViewVerify
17th of January 2025
Other Reports
ViewVerify
West Pharmaceutical time-series forecasting models is one of many West Pharmaceutical's stock analysis techniques aimed to predict future share value based on previously observed values. Time-series forecasting models ae widely used for non-stationary data. Non-stationary data are called the data whose statistical properties e.g. the mean and standard deviation are not constant over time but instead, these metrics vary over time. These non-stationary West Pharmaceutical's historical data is usually called time-series. Some empirical experimentation suggests that the statistical forecasting models outperform the models based exclusively on fundamental analysis to predict the direction of the market movement and maximize returns from investment trading.

West Stock media impact

Far too much social signal, news, headlines, and media speculation about West Pharmaceutical that are available to investors today. That information is available publicly through West media outlets and privately through word of mouth or via West internal channels. However, regardless of the origin, that massive amount of West data is challenging to quantify into actionable patterns, especially for investors that are not very sophisticated with ever-evolving tools and techniques used in the investment management field.
A primary focus of West Pharmaceutical news analysis is to determine if its current price reflects all relevant headlines and social signals impacting the current market conditions. A news analyst typically looks at the history of West Pharmaceutical relative headlines and hype rather than examining external drivers such as technical or fundamental data. It is believed that price action tends to repeat itself due to investors' collective, patterned thinking related to West Pharmaceutical's headlines and news coverage data. This data is often completely overlooked or insufficiently analyzed for actionable insights to drive West Pharmaceutical alpha.

West Pharmaceutical Sentiment by Major News Outlets

Investor sentiment, mood or attitude towards West Pharmaceutical can have a significant impact on its stock price or the market as a whole. This sentiment can be positive or negative, and various factors, such as economic indicators, news events, or market trends, can influence it. When investor sentiment is positive, investors are more likely to buy stocks, increasing demand and increasing the stock price. Positive investor sentiment can be driven by good news about the company or the broader market, such as solid earnings reports or positive economic data.
Note that negative investor sentiment can cause investors to sell stocks, leading to a decrease in demand and a drop in the stock price. Negative sentiment can be driven by factors such as poor earnings reports, negative news about the company or industry, or broader economic concerns. It's important to note that investor sentiment is just one of many factors that can affect stock prices. Other factors, such as company performance, industry trends, and global economic conditions, can also play a significant role in determining the value of a stock.

West Pharmaceutical Historical Investor Sentiment

Investor biases related to West Pharmaceutical's public news can be used to forecast risks associated with an investment in West. The trend in average sentiment can be used to explain how an investor holding West can time the market purely based on public headlines and social activities around West Pharmaceutical Services. Please note that most equities that are difficult to arbitrage are affected by market sentiment the most.
West Pharmaceutical's market sentiment shows the aggregated news analyzed to detect positive and negative mentions from the text and comments. The data is normalized to provide daily scores for West Pharmaceutical and other traded tickers. The bigger the bubble, the more accurate the estimated score. Higher bars for a given day show more participation in the average West Pharmaceutical news discussions. The higher the estimate score, the more favorable the investor's outlook on West Pharmaceutical.

West Pharmaceutical Maximum Pain Price Across April 17th 2025 Option Contracts

West Pharmaceutical's options can also be used to analyze investors' bias and current market sentiment in the context of behavioral finance. For example, Max pain usually refers to a trading concept that asserts that market manipulation can cause the market price of West Pharmaceutical close to the expiration of its current option contract to expire worthlessly. According to most research, about 35% of options are not executed, with roughly 50% traded out before expiration. So, Max pain occurs when market makers reach a net favorable position across all options at a strike price where option holders stand to lose the most money. By contrast, option sellers may reap the most after selling more options than buying, causing them to expire worthlessly. Please continue to view the detailed analysis of West Pharmaceutical's options.

West Pharmaceutical Corporate Directors

Mark ButhmanIndependent DirectorProfile
Deborah TannerIndependent DirectorProfile
William FeeheryIndependent DirectorProfile
Robert FrielIndependent DirectorProfile

Already Invested in West Pharmaceutical Services?

The danger of trading West Pharmaceutical Services is mainly related to its market volatility and Company specific events. As an investor, you must understand the concept of risk-adjusted return before you start trading. The most common way to measure the risk of West Pharmaceutical is by using the Sharpe ratio. The ratio expresses how much excess return you acquire for the extra volatility you endure for holding a more risker asset than West Pharmaceutical. The Sharpe ratio is calculated by using standard deviation and excess return to determine reward per unit of risk. To understand how volatile West Pharmaceutical is, you must compare it to a benchmark. Traditionally, the risk-free rate of return is the rate of return on the shortest-dated U.S. Treasury, such as a 3-year bond.

Additional Tools for West Stock Analysis

When running West Pharmaceutical's price analysis, check to measure West Pharmaceutical's market volatility, profitability, liquidity, solvency, efficiency, growth potential, financial leverage, and other vital indicators. We have many different tools that can be utilized to determine how healthy West Pharmaceutical is operating at the current time. Most of West Pharmaceutical's value examination focuses on studying past and present price action to predict the probability of West Pharmaceutical's future price movements. You can analyze the entity against its peers and the financial market as a whole to determine factors that move West Pharmaceutical's price. Additionally, you may evaluate how the addition of West Pharmaceutical to your portfolios can decrease your overall portfolio volatility.