Strs Ohio Acquires New Position in STERIS plc $STE

Key Points

• Strs Ohio has acquired a new position in STERIS plc, purchasing 55,000 shares valued at approximately $12.47 million, representing about 0.06% of the company.
• Several investment firms have adjusted their positions in STERIS, with analysts showing confidence as evidenced by multiple "buy" ratings and price targets ranging from $263 to $295.
• STERIS recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, an increase from their previous dividend, reflecting a strong commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 55,000 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $12,466,000. Strs Ohio owned approximately 0.06% of STERIS at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in STE. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 8,422 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,731,000 after buying an additional 957 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in STERIS by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,659 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $2,808,000 after buying an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 4,131 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $849,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 362,440 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $74,503,000 after purchasing an additional 8,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 4th quarter valued at $230,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on STE. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They set a "hold" rating and a $263.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $273.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other STERIS news, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total transaction of $1,909,667.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares in the company, valued at $1,448,929.62. The trade was a 56.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total transaction of $798,564.96. Following the sale, the vice president 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. Insiders have sold 18,709 shares of company stock valued at $4,546,940 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

STERIS Stock Performance

NYSE:STE opened at $250.08 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $237.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $233.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market cap of $24.63 billion, a PE ratio of 38.30 and a beta of 0.95. STERIS plc has a 1-year low of $200.98 and a 1-year high of $253.00.

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

STERIS Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is a positive change from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.59%.

About STERIS

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.