Bellevue Group AG Acquires Shares of 73,434 STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Bellevue Group AG acquired a new stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 73,434 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $16,509,000. Bellevue Group AG owned 0.07% of STERIS at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 55.4% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,347 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,395,000 after purchasing an additional 2,262 shares in the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 1,116 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,226 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $709,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 43,318 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $9,565,000 after purchasing an additional 2,370 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in STERIS by 144.9% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 311 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jacqueline B. Kosecoff sold 4,584 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.53, for a total transaction of $1,061,333.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other STERIS news, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 2,024 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.13, for a total transaction of $469,831.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,369 shares in the company, valued at $2,639,085.97. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jacqueline B. Kosecoff sold 4,584 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.53, for a total transaction of $1,061,333.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 7,762 shares of company stock worth $1,798,477. 1.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of STE traded up $5.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $232.79. The stock had a trading volume of 329,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 405,734. The firm has a market cap of $23.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.94 and a beta of 0.83. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $195.47 and a 12 month high of $254.00. The business has a fifty day moving average of $223.23 and a 200 day moving average of $221.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 2.36 and a current ratio of 3.08.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 6.95% and a return on equity of 13.73%. The company’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.30 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.25 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 12th were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 12th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.89%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is 54.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on STE shares. StockNews.com raised shares of STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 15th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 price objective (up from $220.00) on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, May 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, STERIS has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $241.60.

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.