Northern Trust Corp Increases Stake in STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in STERIS plc to $290.92 million, reflecting a 5.8% growth by acquiring 70,523 additional shares during the first quarter.
• Insiders at STERIS sold over 33,000 shares of stock in the last 90 days, with significant transactions from Director Mohsen Sohi and CAO Karen L. Burton, representing decreases in their holdings of 15.53% and 56.86%, respectively.
• STERIS recently announced a dividend increase, raising its quarterly payout from $0.57 to $0.63 per share, reflecting a boost in returns for shareholders.

Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 5.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,283,560 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 70,523 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.31% of STERIS worth $290,919,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in STE. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in STERIS during the fourth quarter valued at about $261,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC boosted its position in STERIS by 67.2% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 3,440 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $707,000 after purchasing an additional 1,383 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in STERIS by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 6,106 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,255,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in STERIS by 219.9% during the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 6,888 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,416,000 after purchasing an additional 4,735 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Freedom Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in STERIS by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,023 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $210,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:STE traded up $0.22 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $248.70. The stock had a trading volume of 548,216 shares, compared to its average volume of 536,863. STERIS plc has a 12-month low of $200.98 and a 12-month high of $252.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.09 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $235.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $230.92.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.02. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.61%.The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.36 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.03 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.63 per share. This is an increase from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Citigroup reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, May 16th. KeyCorp raised their price target on STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. JMP Securities raised their price target on STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $273.50.

Insider Activity at STERIS

In related news, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,110 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 22,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,410,467.56. This trade represents a 15.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $798,564.96. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 7,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,799,762.04. This represents a 30.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,335 shares of company stock valued at $8,822,302 in the last 90 days. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.