STERIS plc $STE Shares Acquired by Legal & General Group Plc

Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 5.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 693,116 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 34,981 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.70% of STERIS worth $171,505,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its holdings in STERIS by 0.3% during the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 12,329 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $3,051,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 7.3% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 661 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of STERIS by 34.9% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 174 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of STERIS by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,953 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $731,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in STERIS by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,494 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $865,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In related news, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.21, for a total transaction of $734,876.58. Following the transaction, the director owned 705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $167,233.05. This trade represents a 81.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.07% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $212.64 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $251.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $250.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.66 and a beta of 1.05. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $204.90 and a 12 month high of $269.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.48 and a quick ratio of 1.75.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.53 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting 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 previous year, the company posted $2.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. STERIS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.150-10.300 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is 35.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on STE. Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.20.

STERIS 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.