Boston Trust Walden Corp Purchases 67,709 Shares of STERIS plc $STE

Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 26.4% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 323,980 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 67,709 shares during the quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp’s holdings in STERIS were worth $77,826,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of STE. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in STERIS by 416.0% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 129 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 4,733.3% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 145 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in shares of STERIS in the first quarter worth $37,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of STERIS in the first quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 503.0% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 199 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other STERIS news, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 159 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.82, for a total transaction of $38,449.38. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 51,096 shares in the company, valued at $12,356,034.72. This trade represents a 0.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total value of $1,909,667.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 5,994 shares in the company, valued at $1,448,929.62. The trade was a 56.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 18,868 shares of company stock valued at $4,585,389. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

STERIS Stock Performance

NYSE:STE opened at $235.65 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $244.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $236.06. STERIS plc has a twelve month low of $200.98 and a twelve month high of $253.00. The stock has a market cap of $23.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.09 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.02. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.61%.The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th were given a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 4th. This is a positive change from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on STE. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen raised STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, September 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, KeyCorp raised 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. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, STERIS currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $273.50.

About STERIS

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.