GHP Investment Advisors Inc. Buys 2,597 Shares of STERIS plc $STE

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 3.9% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 69,657 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,597 shares during the quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in STERIS were worth $15,403,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of STE. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of STERIS during the 4th quarter worth approximately $320,298,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 178.6% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,183,070 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $291,704,000 after buying an additional 758,423 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners acquired a new position in STERIS during the third quarter worth $158,982,000. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd increased its holdings in STERIS by 36.0% during the second quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 2,100,099 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $504,486,000 after buying an additional 556,088 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its position in STERIS by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,614,840 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,169,957,000 after acquiring an additional 260,001 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Trading Up 1.5%

STE opened at $210.20 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. STERIS plc has a twelve month low of $195.14 and a twelve month high of $269.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.51 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $212.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $233.42.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by ($0.03). STERIS had a return on equity of 14.15% and a net margin of 13.18%.The firm had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.74 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. STERIS has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.300 EPS. Analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 11.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. STERIS’s payout ratio is currently 31.78%.

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In related news, Director Richard C. Breeden sold 1,481 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.51, for a total transaction of $310,284.31. Following the sale, the director directly owned 38,964 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,163,347.64. The trade was a 3.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 3,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.64, for a total transaction of $655,510.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 65,021 shares in the company, valued at $13,956,107.44. This represents a 4.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,328 shares of company stock valued at $1,554,051. 1.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of STERIS from $291.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of STERIS from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $278.00.

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.