Davis R M Inc. Decreases Stock Position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Davis R M Inc. cut its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 41.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,820 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 15,246 shares during the period. Davis R M Inc.’s holdings in STERIS were worth $4,945,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Park Edge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in STERIS by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Park Edge Advisors LLC now owns 4,709 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,067,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in STERIS by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 395 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $90,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in STERIS by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,280 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,423,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in STERIS by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 1,970 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $405,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Coast Financial LLC lifted its holdings in STERIS by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 1,658 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $376,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Monday, April 7th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, May 15th. JMP Securities boosted their target price on STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised STERIS from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $260.00 to $276.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $270.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 17,626 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.56, for a total value of $4,275,362.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,385 shares in the company, valued at $12,463,945.60. The trade was a 25.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 12,828 shares of the business’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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,372 shares in the company, valued at $2,843,909.76. This trade represents a 53.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.07% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Stock Up 0.4%

STERIS stock opened at $229.28 on Thursday. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $200.98 and a fifty-two week high of $252.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.96. The company has a market capitalization of $22.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.98 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $236.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $227.70.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.47 billion. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.21% and a net margin of 11.26%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.58 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share 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 $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. This is a boost from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. STERIS’s payout ratio is 36.77%.

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.