STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) Shares Sold by USS Investment Management Ltd

USS Investment Management Ltd decreased its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 22.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 31,557 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 8,949 shares during the period. USS Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in STERIS were worth $6,482,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Select Equity Group L.P. boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 165.3% during the fourth quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 2,599,730 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $534,400,000 after acquiring an additional 1,619,796 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,359,748 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $483,775,000 after acquiring an additional 56,123 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,261,927 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $257,585,000 after acquiring an additional 172,795 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 45.1% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,216,821 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $250,130,000 after acquiring an additional 378,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,213,037 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $249,352,000 after acquiring an additional 83,601 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

STE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on STERIS from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen raised STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, JMP Securities increased their target price on STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, STERIS has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $264.00.

STERIS Stock Performance

NYSE STE opened at $243.61 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $225.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $220.00. STERIS plc has a twelve month low of $200.98 and a twelve month high of $252.79. The company has a market capitalization of $23.93 billion, a PE ratio of 51.72 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.15. STERIS had a return on equity of 13.91% and a net margin of 8.66%. The firm had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.58 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.77%.

STERIS 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.