STERIS plc $STE Shares Purchased by Atom Investors LP

Key Points

• Atom Investors LP boosted its STERIS stake by 63.1% in the fourth quarter, buying 9,834 more shares and bringing its position to 25,427 shares worth about $6.45 million.
• STERIS reported quarterly EPS of $2.83, missing analyst expectations by $0.03, while revenue came in at $1.59 billion and rose 6.7% year over year. The company also reaffirmed FY2027 guidance of $11.10 to $11.30 EPS.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, payable June 26, for an annualized yield of about 1.2%. Meanwhile, analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus target price of $278.00.

Atom Investors LP raised its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 63.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,427 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 9,834 shares during the period. Atom Investors LP's holdings in STERIS were worth $6,446,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its stake in STERIS by 30.2% during the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 164 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Bailard Inc. increased its stake in STERIS by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 1,118 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $283,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in STERIS by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,588 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $888,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its stake in STERIS by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 12,329 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $3,051,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in STERIS by 34.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 174 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company's stock.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STE opened at $206.64 on Wednesday. STERIS plc has a one year low of $195.14 and a one year high of $269.44. The company has a 50-day moving average of $215.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $236.34. The stock has a market cap of $20.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.06 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.54.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.86 by ($0.03). STERIS had a return on equity of 14.15% and a net margin of 13.18%.The firm had revenue of $1.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.74 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. STERIS has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.300 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 11.18 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of STERIS from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of STERIS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on shares of STERIS from $291.00 to $269.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $278.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other STERIS news, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 3,054 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.64, for a total value of $655,510.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,021 shares in the company, valued at $13,956,107.44. This trade represents a 4.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP John Adam Zangerle sold 1,419 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.28, for a total transaction of $296,968.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 35,259 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,379,003.52. The trade was a 3.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 7,328 shares of company stock worth $1,554,051 over the last ninety days. 1.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

STERIS Company Profile

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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