Cary L. Majors Sells 1,682 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) Stock

STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) SVP Cary L. Majors sold 1,682 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.32, for a total value of $365,532.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at $2,471,363.04. This trade represents a 12.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE STE opened at $217.47 on Friday. STERIS plc has a 12-month low of $195.47 and a 12-month high of $248.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a market cap of $21.47 billion, a PE ratio of 49.65 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $225.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $228.43.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.33 billion. STERIS had a return on equity of 13.78% and a net margin of 8.02%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.03 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.15 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.05%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in STE. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of STERIS by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 1,680 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in STERIS by 24.6% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 13,410 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $3,252,000 after acquiring an additional 2,647 shares during the period. BDF Gestion bought a new stake in STERIS in the second quarter worth about $2,644,000. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in STERIS by 52.0% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 12,071 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,928,000 after acquiring an additional 4,132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 11.0% in the 2nd quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60,302 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $13,727,000 after purchasing an additional 5,999 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, November 8th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, November 7th. KeyCorp upped their target price on STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Piper Sandler raised STERIS from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $260.00 in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.00.

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.