Plato Investment Management Ltd Invests $843,000 in STERIS plc $STE

Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 4,026 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $843,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bailard Inc. raised its position in STERIS by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 1,118 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $283,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of STERIS by 34.9% in the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 174 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of STERIS by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $342,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. apricus wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of STERIS by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. apricus wealth LLC now owns 1,506 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of STERIS by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,261 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $560,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at STERIS

In other news, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,058 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.78, for a total transaction of $956,795.24. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,305 shares in the company, valued at $5,730,632.90. This represents a 14.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP John Adam Zangerle sold 1,419 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.28, for a total transaction of $296,968.32. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 35,259 shares in the company, valued at $7,379,003.52. This represents a 3.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 11,386 shares of company stock worth $2,510,846. 1.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on STE. UBS Group reduced their target price on STERIS from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen raised STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 9th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $275.00 price target (up from $270.00) on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, August 7th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on STERIS from $291.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered STERIS from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, STERIS presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $271.33.

STERIS Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE STE opened at $232.83 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $22.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.46 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.91. STERIS plc has a 1 year low of $195.14 and a 1 year high of $269.44. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $218.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $223.89.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.49 billion. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.34% and a net margin of 13.34%.The business’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.34 earnings per share. STERIS has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.000-11.300 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 11.09 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.81%.

About STERIS

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.