Hsbc Holdings PLC Buys 8,668 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 37.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 31,816 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,668 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in STERIS were worth $6,949,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of STE. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of STERIS during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 77.9% in the first quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 121 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of STERIS by 112.7% in the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 134 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of STERIS in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Pingora Partners LLC purchased a new position in STERIS during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 94.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total value of $5,763,004.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other STERIS news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was 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 owns 582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $139,493.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total transaction of $5,763,004.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 42,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

STERIS Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of STE opened at $239.38 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $236.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $225.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.33. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $195.47 and a fifty-two week high of $248.24. The firm has a market cap of $23.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.66 and a beta of 0.83.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.00 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. This is a boost from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $246.00.

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.