STERIS plc $STE Shares Sold by Aberdeen Group plc

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc reduced its stake in STERIS plc by 72%, selling 180,689 shares to end up owning approximately 70,163 shares valued at $15.76 million.
• Multiple institutional investors have increased their holdings in STERIS, with Select Equity Group L.P. raising its position by 165.3% and GAMMA Investing LLC showing a dramatic increase of 35,759.9%.
• STERIS has announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.63, up from $0.57, representing an annualized yield of 1.0%.

Aberdeen Group plc cut its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 72.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 70,163 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 180,689 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc owned 0.07% of STERIS worth $15,760,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of STE. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in STERIS by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,957,852 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $2,710,247,000 after acquiring an additional 46,628 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of STERIS by 9.1% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,439,349 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,232,828,000 after purchasing an additional 452,146 shares during the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. raised its position in STERIS by 165.3% in the fourth quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 2,599,730 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $534,400,000 after acquiring an additional 1,619,796 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in STERIS by 2.6% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,295,275 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $293,574,000 after purchasing an additional 33,348 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,213,037 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $249,352,000 after acquiring an additional 83,601 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at STERIS

In other news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total transaction of $798,564.96. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 7,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,799,762.04. The trade was a 30.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,110 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.96, for a total transaction of $994,455.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 22,361 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,410,467.56. The trade was a 15.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,335 shares of company stock worth $8,822,302 over the last 90 days. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:STE traded up $4.2320 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $251.7320. 375,557 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 595,325. The company has a market cap of $24.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.55 and a beta of 0.92. STERIS plc has a 1 year low of $200.98 and a 1 year high of $252.79. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $234.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $230.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 2.22.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.36 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 14.17%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 EPS. Equities analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on STE. JMP Securities lifted their target price on STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Citigroup reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $263.00 price objective for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, STERIS currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $273.50.

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.