Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Acquires 389 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 4.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,731 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 389 shares during the quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in STERIS were worth $1,979,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Select Equity Group L.P. raised its position in STERIS by 165.3% in the fourth quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 2,599,730 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $534,400,000 after purchasing an additional 1,619,796 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,359,748 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $483,775,000 after purchasing an additional 56,123 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 15.9% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,261,927 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $257,585,000 after buying an additional 172,795 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 45.1% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,216,821 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $250,130,000 after buying an additional 378,252 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,213,037 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $249,352,000 after buying an additional 83,601 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

STERIS Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE STE opened at $240.70 on Thursday. STERIS plc has a 12-month low of $200.98 and a 12-month high of $252.79. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $231.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $222.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a market cap of $23.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.10 and a beta of 0.94.

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

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. JMP Securities increased their target price on shares of STERIS from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $263.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of STERIS from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, STERIS has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $263.83.

Insider Activity at STERIS

In other STERIS news, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 17,626 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.56, for a total transaction of $4,275,362.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 51,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,463,945.60. This represents a 25.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 12,828 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.08, for a total transaction of $3,208,026.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 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. 1.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.