STERIS plc $STE Shares Bought by Perpetual Ltd

Key Points

• Perpetual Ltd increased its STERIS position by 9.5% in the third quarter, owning 69,157 shares valued at approximately $14.5 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 94.69% of the company’s stock.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with three Buy ratings and one Hold rating. STERIS has a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $271.33.
• STERIS exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $2.59 in EPS versus a $2.49 consensus, while revenue rose 7.3% year over year to $1.49 billion. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.69, implying a 1.3% yield.

Perpetual Ltd grew its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 9.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 69,157 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,974 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd owned approximately 0.07% of STERIS worth $14,524,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Corient Private Wealth LP grew its position in STERIS by 109.7% in the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 20,978 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $4,417,000 after buying an additional 10,976 shares in the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS bought a new stake in shares of STERIS during the 1st quarter worth about $5,506,000. Strs Ohio raised its position in shares of STERIS by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 71,748 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $15,866,000 after buying an additional 6,196 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of STERIS by 45.7% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 430,639 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $109,176,000 after buying an additional 134,990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 8.8% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,048,636 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $231,883,000 after acquiring an additional 85,188 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $275.00 price objective (up from $270.00) on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Wall Street Zen cut STERIS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on STERIS from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $271.33.

Insider Activity at STERIS

In related news, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,058 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.78, for a total value of $956,795.24. Following the sale, the director directly owned 24,305 shares in the company, valued at $5,730,632.90. The trade was a 14.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

STERIS Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of STE stock opened at $219.01 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $222.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $217.93. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $195.14 and a fifty-two week high of $269.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.77 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.59 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.10. STERIS had a net margin of 13.34% and a return on equity of 14.34%. The firm had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.34 earnings per share. STERIS's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. STERIS has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.000-11.300 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 11.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th were paid a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is presently 33.74%.

STERIS Profile

STERIS plc NYSE: STE provides products and services designed to support infection prevention, surgical procedures, and the manufacture of healthcare and pharmaceutical products. The company serves healthcare providers, pharmaceutical and biotechnology manufacturers, and other organizations that require controlled, sterile environments.

Its Healthcare segment offers sterilization and decontamination equipment, operating-room products, surgical instruments, endoscopy products, consumables, and related maintenance and procedural services.

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