2,074 Shares in STERIS plc $STE Bought by Contravisory Investment Management Inc.

Key Points

• Contravisory Investment Management Inc. has acquired a new stake in STERIS plc, purchasing 2,074 shares valued at approximately $498,000.
• Analysts have generally upgraded STERIS shares, with six analysts rating it as a buy and an average target price of $273.50 after recent increases in target prices from firms like KeyCorp and Morgan Stanley.
• STERIS recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.63, up from $0.57, reflecting a yield of 1.0%, highlighting a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,074 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $498,000.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 1st quarter worth approximately $349,950,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 55.2% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,520,479 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $344,617,000 after purchasing an additional 540,999 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,439,349 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,232,828,000 after purchasing an additional 452,146 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 35,759.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 410,237 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $92,980,000 after purchasing an additional 409,093 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 1st quarter worth approximately $65,435,000. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other STERIS news, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,110 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at $5,410,467.56. The trade was a 15.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the vice president 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,709 shares of company stock worth $4,546,940. Insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

STERIS Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of STERIS stock traded down $1.79 on Friday, reaching $248.71. The company had a trading volume of 643,521 shares, compared to its average volume of 520,120. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $239.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $234.06. The firm has a market cap of $24.50 billion, a PE ratio of 38.09 and a beta of 0.95. STERIS plc has a 52-week low of $200.98 and a 52-week high of $253.00. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.02. The business 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 business's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.03 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. This is a boost from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. STERIS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on STE shares. 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 report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, September 14th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $263.00 price target for the company. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.