American Century Companies Inc. Has $97.40 Million Position in STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

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American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 16.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 429,734 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 60,036 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 0.44% of STERIS worth $97,399,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in STE. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of STERIS by 4,733.3% during the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 145 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in shares of STERIS during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of STERIS during the 1st quarter worth approximately $43,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of STERIS by 503.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 199 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in STERIS in the 1st quarter valued at $45,000. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other STERIS news, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 17,626 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $12,463,945.60. This represents a 25.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total value of $1,909,667.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,448,929.62. The trade was a 56.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,131 shares of company stock worth $8,023,737 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:STE traded up $4.2320 during trading on Friday, reaching $251.7320. 233,463 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 594,330. The company's 50 day moving average is $234.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $230.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.79 billion, a PE ratio of 38.55 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. 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 released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.36 billion. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.61%.The company's revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.03 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $263.00 price target for the company. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, May 16th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, STERIS presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $273.50.

STERIS Profile

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.