State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Lowers Holdings in STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its holdings in STERIS plc by 10.9%, now owning 31,657 shares valued at approximately $7.18 million.
• STERIS recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, an increase from the previous dividend of $0.57, representing a 1.0% yield.
• STERIS reported quarterly earnings with an EPS of $2.34, exceeding estimates and showing an 8.8% increase in year-over-year revenue.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lowered its holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 10.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,657 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 3,876 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in STERIS were worth $7,175,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of STERIS by 4,733.3% in the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 145 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in STERIS in the first quarter valued at about $37,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in STERIS in the first quarter worth about $43,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 503.0% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 199 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new position in shares of STERIS during the first quarter valued at about $45,000. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other STERIS news, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,110 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were 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 represents a 15.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 17,626 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.56, for a total transaction of $4,275,362.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,385 shares in the company, valued at $12,463,945.60. This represents a 25.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,131 shares of company stock worth $8,023,737 in the last ninety days. 1.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

STERIS Price Performance

NYSE:STE traded up $4.2320 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $251.7320. 233,463 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 594,330. STERIS plc has a twelve month low of $200.98 and a twelve month high of $252.79. The firm has a market cap of $24.79 billion, a PE ratio of 38.55 and a beta of 0.92. The stock's 50-day moving average is $234.75 and its 200-day moving average is $230.29. 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 firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. STERIS's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is a positive change from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is 34.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on STE shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $263.00 target price for the company. JMP Securities lifted their target price on shares of STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. 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 note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $273.50.

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.