HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Purchases Shares of 3,216 STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 3,216 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $710,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fenimore Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc. now owns 210,747 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $46,333,000 after purchasing an additional 24,377 shares during the last quarter. Caden Capital Partners LP grew its position in shares of STERIS by 80.0% in the 4th quarter. Caden Capital Partners LP now owns 82,312 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $18,096,000 after buying an additional 36,576 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new position in shares of STERIS during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,351,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 5,199.4% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 65,925 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $14,494,000 after acquiring an additional 64,681 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. lifted its stake in STERIS by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. now owns 45,095 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $9,914,000 after acquiring an additional 5,168 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In other news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 1,154 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.64, for a total value of $267,312.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,546,660.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other STERIS news, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 2,024 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.13, for a total transaction of $469,831.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,639,085.97. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Renato Tamaro sold 1,154 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.64, for a total value of $267,312.56. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,546,660.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 7,762 shares of company stock valued at $1,798,477. Insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on STE. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective (up from $220.00) on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, May 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $241.60.

STERIS Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $216.50 on Wednesday. STERIS plc has a 1 year low of $195.47 and a 1 year high of $254.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 3.08 and a quick ratio of 2.36. The company has a 50-day moving average of $217.72 and a 200 day moving average of $220.27. The firm has a market cap of $21.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.68 and a beta of 0.85.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.17. STERIS had a net margin of 6.95% and a return on equity of 13.73%. The business had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.30 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 12th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 12th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.