Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. Has $14.88 Million Position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. lessened its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 1.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 65,658 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 1,097 shares during the period. STERIS comprises about 3.1% of Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. owned 0.07% of STERIS worth $14,881,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of STERIS in the 1st quarter valued at about $267,000. Callahan Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of STERIS by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC now owns 41,376 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $9,378,000 after acquiring an additional 2,807 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of STERIS by 23.0% in the 1st quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,373 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,652,000 after acquiring an additional 1,379 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. grew its position in shares of STERIS by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 14,229 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $3,225,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of STERIS by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 74,218 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $16,821,000 after acquiring an additional 3,137 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $263.00 price objective for the company. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of STERIS from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $276.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Monday, April 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, STERIS presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $266.50.

STERIS Stock Performance

NYSE STE traded down $1.36 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $227.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 552,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 555,343. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.69 and a beta of 0.92. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $200.98 and a 12 month high of $252.79. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $238.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $226.28.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.47 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 11.26% and a return on equity of 14.21%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.58 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 10th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.77%.

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In other news, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 17,626 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.56, for a total value of $4,275,362.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 51,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,463,945.60. The trade was a 25.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 12,828 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.08, for a total transaction of $3,208,026.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,843,909.76. The trade was a 53.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

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.