World Investment Advisors Acquires 2,081 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

World Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 10.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,693 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 2,081 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors' holdings in STERIS were worth $5,143,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in STE. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 1st quarter worth approximately $46,000. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 17,830 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $4,041,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 22,964 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $5,205,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 1st quarter worth approximately $216,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,129,579 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $256,019,000 after acquiring an additional 9,936 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on STE. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on STERIS in a report on Thursday, May 29th. They set a "hold" rating and a $263.00 target price on the stock. JMP Securities lifted their target price on STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen raised STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, May 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $263.83.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STE traded down $0.70 on Friday, reaching $237.55. 242,380 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 550,261. The firm has a market cap of $23.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.31 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.39. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $200.98 and a 12 month high of $252.79. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $237.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $225.19.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.47 billion. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.21% and a net margin of 11.26%. STERIS's quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.58 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 10th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.77%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 17,626 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.56, for a total transaction of $4,275,362.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,385 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,463,945.60. This represents a 25.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 12,828 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.08, for a total value of $3,208,026.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,843,909.76. This represents a 53.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by 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.