Swedbank AB Purchases 14,500 Shares of STERIS plc $STE

Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 5.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 271,078 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 14,500 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned about 0.28% of STERIS worth $68,724,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in STE. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new position in STERIS in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in STERIS in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in STERIS by 115.4% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 112 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in STERIS by 423.8% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new position in STERIS in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of STE stock opened at $214.69 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.48 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $224.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $244.45. STERIS plc has a one year low of $209.61 and a one year high of $269.44. The company has a market capitalization of $21.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.94 and a beta of 0.95.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.53. STERIS had a net margin of 12.15% and a return on equity of 14.34%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.32 EPS. The company's revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 10.22 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. STERIS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,098 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.21, for a total transaction of $734,876.58. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $167,233.05. This trade represents a 81.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of STERIS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 26th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of STERIS from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, STERIS currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $275.20.

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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