Running Oak Capital LLC Raises Stake in STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

• Running Oak Capital LLC increased its stake in STERIS plc by 2.5%, acquiring a total of 68,115 shares valued at approximately $16.36 million.
• STERIS recently reported quarterly earnings of $2.34 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, and posted a revenue of $1.40 billion, reflecting an 8.8% increase year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, up from the previous $0.57, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.0%.

Running Oak Capital LLC increased its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 2.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 68,115 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 1,656 shares during the period. Running Oak Capital LLC owned about 0.07% of STERIS worth $16,363,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,957,852 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $2,710,247,000 after purchasing an additional 46,628 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in STERIS by 9.1% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,439,349 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,232,828,000 after buying an additional 452,146 shares during the period. Generation Investment Management LLP lifted its position in STERIS by 5.4% during the first quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 3,354,545 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $760,308,000 after buying an additional 170,392 shares during the period. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd acquired a new stake in STERIS in the 1st quarter worth about $349,950,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in STERIS by 55.2% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,520,479 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $344,617,000 after buying an additional 540,999 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company's stock.

STERIS Price Performance

STERIS stock opened at $242.54 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $243.08 and a 200-day moving average of $235.36. STERIS plc has a 52-week low of $200.98 and a 52-week high of $253.00. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $23.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.14 and a beta of 1.01.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm 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. The firm's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on STE shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, September 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $273.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total transaction of $1,909,667.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total transaction of $798,564.96. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 7,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,799,762.04. The trade was a 30.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,709 shares of company stock worth $4,546,940 in the last 90 days. 1.07% of the stock is owned by 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.

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