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

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in STE. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in STERIS by 4,733.3% during the 1st 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 period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in STERIS during the 1st quarter worth $37,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in STERIS during the 1st quarter worth $43,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 503.0% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 199 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new position in shares of STERIS in the 1st quarter valued at about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STE has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Sunday. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. 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 on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $273.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, 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 value 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,110 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.96, for a total transaction of $994,455.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 22,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. In the last 90 days, insiders have 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 Performance

NYSE:STE traded down $1.12 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $248.76. 116,831 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 588,568. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.08 and a beta of 0.95. STERIS plc has a twelve month low of $200.98 and a twelve month high of $253.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $237.41 and a 200 day moving average of $233.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.03 EPS. The business's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. 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%. This is an increase from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. STERIS's 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.