Wealthspire Advisors LLC Makes New $272,000 Investment in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Key Points

• Wealthspire Advisors LLC has made a new investment of approximately $272,000 in STERIS plc by acquiring 1,198 shares during the 1st quarter of the year.
• Several institutions, including Wells Fargo and Invesco Ltd., have increased their stakes in STERIS plc, indicating strong interest among institutional investors.
• STERIS has raised its quarterly dividend to $0.63, up from $0.57, with a dividend yield of 1.0%, to be paid on September 26th.

Wealthspire Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,198 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $272,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. iA Global Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in STERIS during the first quarter worth about $1,301,000. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in STERIS by 51.8% during the first quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 1,802 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $409,000 after buying an additional 615 shares during the period. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in STERIS during the first quarter worth about $45,000. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA boosted its stake in STERIS by 3.4% during the first quarter. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA now owns 50,805 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $11,515,000 after buying an additional 1,670 shares during the period. Finally, Haven Private LLC purchased a new position in STERIS during the first quarter worth about $298,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

STERIS Stock Up 1.2%

NYSE:STE traded up $2.90 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $246.66. The stock had a trading volume of 100,037 shares, compared to its average volume of 601,845. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $234.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $229.09. The company has a market capitalization of $24.29 billion, a PE ratio of 37.75 and a beta of 0.92. STERIS plc has a twelve month low of $200.98 and a twelve month high of $252.79. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

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

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. 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 is 34.92%.

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In related news, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,110 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.96, for a total value of $994,455.60. Following the sale, the director 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 17,626 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.56, for a total transaction of $4,275,362.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 51,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,463,945.60. This trade represents a 25.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 45,959 shares of company stock valued at $11,231,764 over the last quarter. Insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on STE. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $273.50.

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.