Isthmus Partners LLC Makes New Investment in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Isthmus Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 200 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $44,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of STERIS by 0.8% during the second quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,175 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,356,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in shares of STERIS by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 570 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its holdings in STERIS by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 13,857 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,115,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund lifted its stake in STERIS by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 3,520 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $774,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 77.9% during the 1st quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 121 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total transaction of $113,368.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on STE shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 target price (up from $220.00) on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, STERIS has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $246.00.

STERIS Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of STE stock traded up $0.77 on Friday, reaching $239.82. 365,096 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 351,923. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $230.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $224.83. The stock has a market cap of $23.65 billion, a PE ratio of 62.78 and a beta of 0.83. STERIS plc has a one year low of $195.47 and a one year high of $245.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 2.33 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.16. STERIS had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 7.36%. The company had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.00 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 5th. This is a positive change from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.45%.

STERIS Company 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.