MBB Public Markets I LLC Acquires New Stake in STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

• MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new stake in STERIS plc, purchasing 1,408 shares valued at approximately $319,000 in the first quarter.
• STERIS has recently seen analysts raise their target price, with KeyCorp increasing it from $277.00 to $288.00 and maintaining an "overweight" rating.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63, up from the previous $0.57, indicating a positive trend in financial management.

MBB Public Markets I LLC purchased a new stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,408 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $319,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ascent Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 1st quarter valued at $261,000. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in STERIS during the first quarter worth about $532,000. Sciencast Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 109.2% in the first quarter. Sciencast Management LP now owns 7,200 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,632,000 after purchasing an additional 3,758 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 3.5% in the first quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,611 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $365,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of STERIS by 32.3% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 242,732 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $55,015,000 after acquiring an additional 59,264 shares during the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on STE. JMP Securities upped their target price on STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Citigroup reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They set a "hold" rating and a $263.00 price target on the stock. Six investment 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 presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $273.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the vice president directly owned 7,221 shares in the company, valued at $1,799,762.04. This represents a 30.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,110 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.96, for a total value of $994,455.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director 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 three months, insiders have sold 18,709 shares of company stock valued at $4,546,940. Company insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of STE traded down $2.35 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $250.08. The stock had a trading volume of 774,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 461,316. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $200.98 and a 12 month high of $253.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.63 billion, a PE ratio of 38.30 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 2.22. The company's 50-day moving average is $237.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $233.09.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.61%.The company had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.36 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. STERIS's revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. This is a positive change from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.59%.

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.