LPL Financial LLC Has $8.70 Million Stock Position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in STERIS plc by 7.6%, owning 38,400 shares valued at approximately $8.7 million as of the end of the 1st quarter.
• CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 17,626 shares of STERIS stock, reducing his ownership by 25.54%, while SVP Cary L. Majors sold 12,828 shares, decreasing his stake by 53.01%.
• STERIS recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.63 per share, reflecting a positive change from the previous dividend and representing an annualized yield of 1.0%.

LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 7.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 38,400 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,696 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC's holdings in STERIS were worth $8,703,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Select Equity Group L.P. increased its position in shares of STERIS by 165.3% during 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 purchasing an additional 1,619,796 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased 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 valued at $1,232,828,000 after acquiring an additional 452,146 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased 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 valued at $92,980,000 after acquiring an additional 409,093 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in STERIS by 4,534.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 219,032 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $45,024,000 after purchasing an additional 214,306 shares during the last quarter. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in STERIS in the fourth quarter valued at $37,243,000. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

STERIS Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE:STE traded up $2.10 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $243.72. 341,082 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 723,378. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $234.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $229.09. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $200.98 and a fifty-two week high of $252.79. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $24.00 billion, a PE ratio of 37.32 and a beta of 0.92.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 prior year, the company posted $2.03 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate 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. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. STERIS's payout ratio is presently 34.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They set a "hold" rating and a $263.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. JMP Securities increased their price objective on shares of STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, STERIS has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $273.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total value of $1,909,667.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 5,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,448,929.62. The trade was a 56.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 12,828 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.08, for a total transaction of $3,208,026.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,843,909.76. This trade represents a 53.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,959 shares of company stock worth $11,231,764 over the last three months. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.