STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) Stock Holdings Boosted by Premier Fund Managers Ltd

Premier Fund Managers Ltd lifted its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 15.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 230,000 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 30,000 shares during the quarter. STERIS makes up approximately 2.0% of Premier Fund Managers Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Premier Fund Managers Ltd’s holdings in STERIS were worth $54,967,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in STERIS by 8.7% during the third quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 1,680 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $407,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 24.6% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 13,410 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $3,252,000 after purchasing an additional 2,647 shares during the last quarter. BDF Gestion bought a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,644,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in STERIS by 7.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,738,630 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $390,880,000 after purchasing an additional 120,616 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in STERIS by 11.0% during the second quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60,302 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $13,727,000 after buying an additional 5,999 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total transaction of $5,763,004.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,603,710. This trade represents a 35.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on STE. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler raised STERIS from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $230.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com downgraded STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.00.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $211.98 on Wednesday. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $195.47 and a 12 month high of $248.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market cap of $20.92 billion, a PE ratio of 48.40 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $229.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $228.66.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.02. STERIS had a return on equity of 13.78% and a net margin of 8.02%. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.03 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.08%. STERIS’s payout ratio is 52.05%.

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.