7,437 Shares in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) Bought by Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS

Key Points

• Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS acquired 7,437 shares of STERIS plc, valued at approximately $1.68 million, during the first quarter of the year.
• Multiple hedge funds, including Prudential Financial Inc. and Korea Investment CORP, significantly increased their stakes in STERIS, with ownership among institutional investors now at 94.69%.
• Analysts have shown a favorable outlook for STERIS with an upgrade from Morgan Stanley, raising its target price from $260 to $276, reflecting a consensus price target of $270.33.

Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS purchased a new position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 7,437 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,685,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prudential Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of STERIS by 233.2% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 52,592 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $10,811,000 after acquiring an additional 36,808 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP lifted its stake in STERIS by 158.3% in the 4th quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 69,830 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $14,354,000 after buying an additional 42,800 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in STERIS by 15.9% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,261,927 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $257,585,000 after buying an additional 172,795 shares in the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co purchased a new position in STERIS in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,104,000. Finally, NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in STERIS by 30.1% in the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 5,374 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,105,000 after buying an additional 1,243 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on STE. Morgan Stanley raised shares of STERIS from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $276.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $263.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of STERIS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $270.33.

STERIS Stock Up 0.8%

STERIS stock opened at $227.28 on Friday. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $200.98 and a fifty-two week high of $252.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.96. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $237.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $227.12. The company has a market capitalization of $22.36 billion, a PE ratio of 36.66 and a beta of 0.92.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.15. STERIS had a net margin of 11.26% and a return on equity of 14.21%. The firm had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.58 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. STERIS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other STERIS news, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 17,626 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.56, for a total value of $4,275,362.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,385 shares in the company, valued at $12,463,945.60. The trade was a 25.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 12,828 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.08, for a total transaction of $3,208,026.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,843,909.76. This trade represents a 53.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

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.

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