Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Sells 6,383 Shares of STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

• Asset Management One Co. Ltd. reduced its holdings in STERIS plc by 6.4%, selling 6,383 shares and retaining a total of 93,415 shares valued at approximately $22.4 million.
• STERIS recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.63 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio of 38.59%.
• Research analysts have set a consensus target price of $273.50 for STERIS shares, with several firms upgrading their price objectives significantly in recent months.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lowered its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 93,415 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 6,383 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. owned 0.09% of STERIS worth $22,438,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Foresight Group Ltd Liability Partnership bought a new position in STERIS during the first quarter valued at $25,958,000. Ascent Group LLC bought a new position in STERIS during the first quarter valued at $261,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in STERIS by 31.9% during the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 102,488 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $23,229,000 after purchasing an additional 24,809 shares during the last quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC lifted its position in STERIS by 21.8% during the second quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 1,290 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp lifted its position in STERIS by 116.2% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 31,064 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $7,462,000 after purchasing an additional 16,694 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

STERIS Trading Down 0.4%

STE stock opened at $240.99 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $23.74 billion, a PE ratio of 36.90 and a beta of 1.01. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $200.98 and a 12 month high of $253.00. The firm's 50-day moving average is $244.78 and its 200 day moving average is $237.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.53.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 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 the consensus estimate of $1.36 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 14.17%. The firm's revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th were paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is a boost from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. STERIS's payout ratio is 38.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on STE. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, September 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $273.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,495 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.56, for a total value of $844,252.20. Following the transaction, the director owned 705 shares of the company's stock, valued at $170,299.80. This trade represents a 83.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total transaction of $1,909,667.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares in the company, valued at $1,448,929.62. This represents a 56.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,868 shares of company stock worth $4,585,389 over the last ninety days. 1.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

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