Gotham Asset Management LLC Sells 7,778 Shares of STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in STERIS plc by 7.5%, now holding 95,385 shares valued at approximately $21.6 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• STERIS recently increased its quarterly dividend from $0.57 to $0.63, representing an annualized dividend yield of 1.0%.
• After a positive earnings report, analysts currently rate STERIS with an average of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $273.50.

Gotham Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 7.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 95,385 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 7,778 shares during the quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned about 0.10% of STERIS worth $21,619,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in STE. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 0.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,957,852 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $2,710,247,000 after buying an additional 46,628 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 9.1% in the first 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 buying an additional 452,146 shares in the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 5.4% in the first quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 3,354,545 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $760,308,000 after buying an additional 170,392 shares in the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,619,796 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orbis Allan Gray Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of STERIS in the first quarter worth about $349,950,000. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on STE shares. JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $263.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Citigroup reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, STERIS currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $273.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other STERIS news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the business'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. This trade represents a 56.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,709 shares of company stock worth $4,546,940 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

STERIS Trading Down 0.9%

NYSE:STE traded down $2.33 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $246.07. The company had a trading volume of 121,810 shares, compared to its average volume of 587,416. The company has a market capitalization of $24.23 billion, a PE ratio of 37.68 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $236.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $232.63. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $200.98 and a 52 week high of $252.79. 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 announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.02. STERIS had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 14.17%. The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.36 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.03 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm 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. This is a positive change 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 yield of 1.0%. STERIS's payout ratio is presently 38.59%.

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.