Waverly Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 2,022 STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Waverly Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,022 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $416,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Select Equity Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 165.3% during the 4th quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 2,599,730 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $534,400,000 after buying an additional 1,619,796 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in STERIS in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $238,836,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in STERIS in the fourth quarter worth approximately $223,987,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of STERIS by 45.1% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,216,821 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $250,130,000 after purchasing an additional 378,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 4,534.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 219,032 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $45,024,000 after purchasing an additional 214,306 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company's stock.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of STERIS stock traded down $1.17 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $245.03. 525,887 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 543,529. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $227.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $220.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The firm has a market cap of $24.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.02 and a beta of 0.96. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $200.98 and a 52 week high of $252.79.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.47 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 8.66% and a return on equity of 13.91%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.58 EPS. Research analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is 36.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Piper Sandler raised their target price on STERIS from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, May 16th. JMP Securities lifted their price target on shares of STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of STERIS from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $264.00.

About STERIS

STERIS plc provides infection prevention products and services worldwide. It operates through four segments: Healthcare, Applied Sterilization Technologies, Life Sciences, and Dental. The Healthcare segment offers cleaning chemistries and sterility assurance products; automated endoscope reprocessing system and tracking products; endoscopy accessories, washers, sterilizers, and other pieces of capital equipment for the operation of a sterile processing department; and equipment used directly in the operating room, including surgical tables, lights, and connectivity solutions, as well as equipment management services.