Locust Wood Capital Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 45.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 370,784 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 115,093 shares during the period. STERIS makes up 2.7% of Locust Wood Capital Advisers LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Locust Wood Capital Advisers LLC owned approximately 0.38% of STERIS worth $84,038,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of STE. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of STERIS by 4,733.3% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 145 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of STERIS during the 1st quarter valued at about $43,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in shares of STERIS during the first quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of STERIS in the first quarter worth approximately $46,000. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.
Insider Transactions at STERIS
In other news, 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 directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,463,945.60. This trade represents a 25.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.
STERIS Stock Up 2.9%
Shares of STE stock traded up $6.83 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $243.07. 863,791 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 722,235. The company's 50-day moving average price is $234.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $228.81. The company has a market cap of $23.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.22 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $200.98 and a 12 month high of $252.79.
STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $1.36 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. This is a boost from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. STERIS's payout ratio is 34.92%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley upgraded STERIS from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $260.00 to $276.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. JMP Securities increased their price objective on STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $270.33.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on STE
About STERIS
(
Free Report)
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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