Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 30,672 Shares of STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC reduced its stake in STERIS plc by 37.1%, owning 51,932 shares worth approximately $11.66 million following the sale of 30,672 shares.
• STERIS's recent earnings report showed a better-than-expected EPS of $2.34, surpassing forecasts by $0.02, with revenue increasing by 8.8% year-over-year to $1.40 billion.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.57 to $0.63, marking a 1.0% yield for investors.

Hsbc Holdings PLC cut its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 37.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,932 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 30,672 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.05% of STERIS worth $11,657,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in STERIS by 0.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,957,852 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $2,710,247,000 after purchasing an additional 46,628 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in 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 valued at $1,232,828,000 after purchasing an additional 452,146 shares in the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. increased its stake in 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 valued at $534,400,000 after purchasing an additional 1,619,796 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in STERIS by 2.6% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,295,275 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $293,574,000 after purchasing an additional 33,348 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in STERIS by 5.8% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,283,560 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $290,919,000 after purchasing an additional 70,523 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. KeyCorp raised their target price 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. Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. 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 report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $263.00 target price for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $273.50.

STERIS Stock Performance

NYSE:STE traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $245.05. 200,210 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 590,633. STERIS plc has a one year low of $200.98 and a one year high of $252.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.13 billion, a PE ratio of 37.49 and a beta of 0.92. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $235.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $231.19. 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 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. STERIS's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In related news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the vice president directly 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total transaction of $1,909,667.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares in the company, valued at $1,448,929.62. This trade represents a 56.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 36,335 shares of company stock worth $8,822,302. Corporate insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

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.