STERIS plc $STE Shares Bought by National Pension Service

Key Points

• The National Pension Service increased its stake in STERIS plc by 7.8% in the first quarter, now holding 166,284 shares worth approximately $37.68 million.
• STERIS recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63, up from the previous $0.57, reflecting a 1.0% dividend yield.
• In the latest earnings report, STERIS beat analyst estimates with an EPS of $2.34 and a revenue of $1.40 billion, marking an 8.8% year-over-year increase.

National Pension Service boosted its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 7.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 166,284 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 12,057 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned 0.17% of STERIS worth $37,688,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Park Edge Advisors LLC raised its position in STERIS by 1.0% during the first quarter. Park Edge Advisors LLC now owns 4,709 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in STERIS by 16.5% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 395 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $90,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC raised its position in STERIS by 1.0% during the first quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,280 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC raised its position in STERIS by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 1,970 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $405,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Coast Financial LLC raised its position in STERIS by 3.9% during the first quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 1,658 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $376,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

STE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $263.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their price objective on STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, STERIS currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $273.50.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:STE traded up $2.7520 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $247.3120. The stock had a trading volume of 376,744 shares, compared to its average volume of 599,081. 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 business has a fifty day moving average price of $234.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $229.84. The stock has a market cap of $24.36 billion, a PE ratio of 37.87 and a beta of 0.92. STERIS plc has a 1-year low of $200.98 and a 1-year high of $252.79.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.61%.The business's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. This is a boost from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.92%.

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In other news, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,495 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.56, for a total value of $844,252.20. Following the sale, the director directly owned 705 shares of the company's stock, valued at $170,299.80. The trade was a 83.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 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 value of $994,455.60. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 22,361 shares in the company, valued at $5,410,467.56. This trade represents a 15.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 33,131 shares of company stock valued at $8,023,737. Insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

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.