KBC Group NV Decreases Stake in Sotera Health Company (NASDAQ:SHC)

KBC Group NV reduced its stake in Sotera Health Company (NASDAQ:SHC - Free Report) by 96.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,712 shares of the company's stock after selling 179,653 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in Sotera Health were worth $78,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of SHC. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Sotera Health by 45.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,630,736 shares of the company's stock worth $22,308,000 after purchasing an additional 507,147 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sotera Health by 67.3% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 54,549 shares of the company's stock valued at $746,000 after buying an additional 21,939 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Sotera Health by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 45,173 shares of the company's stock valued at $618,000 after buying an additional 4,418 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sotera Health by 39.4% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 9,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 2,627 shares during the period. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Sotera Health by 128.9% during the fourth quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 90,332 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,236,000 after buying an additional 50,870 shares during the period. 91.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sotera Health Stock Up 3.9%

SHC stock traded up $0.45 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $12.06. The stock had a trading volume of 170,322 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,230,375. The firm has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 151.08 and a beta of 1.81. The business has a 50-day moving average of $12.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.29. Sotera Health Company has a 52-week low of $9.53 and a 52-week high of $17.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.55, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 2.19.

Sotera Health (NASDAQ:SHC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $254.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $245.56 million. Sotera Health had a return on equity of 41.08% and a net margin of 2.24%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Sotera Health Company will post 0.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Sotera Health from $15.00 to $13.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised Sotera Health from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 28th. Barclays reduced their target price on Sotera Health from $15.00 to $13.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Sotera Health from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $14.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Monday, May 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $16.00.

Sotera Health Profile

Sotera Health Company engages in the provision of sterilization, lab testing, and advisory services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Sterigenics, Nordion, and Nelson Labs. It provides mission-critical end-to-end sterilization services, including gamma and electron beam irradiation, and ethylene oxide processing, as well as designs, installs, and maintains gamma irradiation systems.