STERIS plc $STE Shares Sold by Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB

Key Points

• Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB reduced its holdings in STERIS plc by 4.7%, owning 36,167 shares worth approximately $8.7 million after selling 1,780 shares in the 2nd quarter.
• Several institutional investors increased their stakes in STERIS, with Orbis Allan Gray Ltd acquiring a significant new position worth $349.95 million in the 1st quarter.
• STERIS recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, up from $0.57, reflecting a 1.1% dividend yield and a payout ratio of 38.59%.

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lessened its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,167 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 1,780 shares during the quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB's holdings in STERIS were worth $8,688,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of STE. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd purchased a new position in shares of STERIS during the 1st quarter worth $349,950,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 55.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,520,479 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $344,617,000 after acquiring an additional 540,999 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 9.1% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,439,349 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,232,828,000 after acquiring an additional 452,146 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in STERIS in the 1st quarter valued at about $65,435,000. Finally, Generation Investment Management LLP raised its holdings in STERIS by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 3,354,545 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $760,308,000 after buying an additional 170,392 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Saturday, September 27th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, September 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $273.50.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $235.65 on Tuesday. STERIS plc has a one year low of $200.98 and a one year high of $253.00. The company has a market cap of $23.21 billion, a PE ratio of 36.09 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 2.22. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $244.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $236.06.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.02. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.61%.The business had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.36 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th were issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. This is a boost from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is 38.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,110 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.96, for a total transaction of $994,455.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 22,361 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,410,467.56. This trade represents a 15.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $798,564.96. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 7,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,799,762.04. This represents a 30.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 18,868 shares of company stock valued at $4,585,389. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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