Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC Buys Shares of 1,277 STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

• Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in STERIS plc valued at approximately $289,000, purchasing 1,277 shares according to a recent SEC disclosure.
• Insiders have sold a total of 18,709 shares in STERIS over the past three months, amounting to nearly $4.55 million in value.
• STERIS recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, which represents an increase from $0.57, with a yield of 1.0%.

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,277 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $289,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Grove Bank & Trust raised its stake in STERIS by 4,733.3% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 145 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in STERIS in the first quarter valued at $37,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of STERIS during the first quarter valued at about $43,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 503.0% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 199 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new position in shares of STERIS during the first quarter valued at about $45,000. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other STERIS news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value 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. This represents a 30.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,110 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.96, for a total transaction of $994,455.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 22,361 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,410,467.56. The trade was a 15.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 18,709 shares of company stock valued at $4,546,940. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

STERIS Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:STE traded down $2.35 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $250.08. 774,374 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 461,316. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $237.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $233.09. The company has a market cap of $24.63 billion, a PE ratio of 38.30 and a beta of 0.95. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $200.98 and a 12 month high of $253.00.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 during 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 for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. This is a positive change from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. STERIS's payout ratio is currently 38.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on STE. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, May 29th. They set a "hold" rating and a $263.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of STERIS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, September 6th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, May 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $273.50.

STERIS Company 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.