STERIS plc $STE Shares Acquired by KBC Group NV

Key Points

• KBC Group NV increased its position in STERIS by 70.8% in Q4 to 26,846 shares worth about $6.81 million, and institutional investors now own 94.69% of the company.
• Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,098 shares on March 5 at an average price of $237.21, reducing her stake by 81.46% to 705 shares; corporate insiders own 1.07% of the stock.
• STERIS reported Q earnings of $2.53 (in line) with revenue up 9.2% and set FY2026 guidance of $10.15–$10.30 EPS; analysts' consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $275.20.

KBC Group NV increased its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 70.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,846 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 11,125 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV's holdings in STERIS were worth $6,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of STE. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 178.6% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,183,070 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $291,704,000 after buying an additional 758,423 shares during the period. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in shares of STERIS in the third quarter valued at $158,982,000. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 36.0% in the second quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 2,100,099 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $504,486,000 after buying an additional 556,088 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 246.4% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 553,834 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $137,041,000 after buying an additional 393,970 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 16.4% in the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,567,238 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $387,797,000 after buying an additional 221,199 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at STERIS

In other news, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,098 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.21, for a total transaction of $734,876.58. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 705 shares of the company's stock, valued at $167,233.05. This represents a 81.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered STERIS from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $275.20.

STERIS Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE STE opened at $225.80 on Friday. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $209.98 and a 12 month high of $269.44. The company has a market cap of $22.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.49 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $231.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $245.98.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.53 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.53. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.34% and a net margin of 12.15%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.32 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. STERIS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.150-10.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.15%.

About STERIS

STERIS Corporation NYSE: STE is a global provider of infection prevention, contamination control and procedural products and services for the healthcare, life sciences, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. The company develops, manufactures and supports a broad portfolio of equipment and consumables designed to reduce risk of infection, maintain sterile environments and support critical clinical and manufacturing procedures.

Its offerings include sterilization and decontamination systems, instrument washers and washers-disinfectors, endoscope reprocessing solutions, surgical equipment and procedural disposables, and contamination-control products for cleanrooms and laboratories.

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