Dana Investment Advisors Inc. Has $450,000 Holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Dana Investment Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 2.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,052 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 55 shares during the quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in STERIS were worth $450,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in STERIS by 13.7% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,442,805 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,414,453,000 after buying an additional 778,613 shares during the last quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP lifted its position in STERIS by 23.5% in the 1st quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 1,485,578 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $333,988,000 after acquiring an additional 282,387 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its stake in STERIS by 29.7% during the 2nd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,150,517 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $251,663,000 after purchasing an additional 263,383 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in STERIS by 1,946.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 270,311 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $59,344,000 after purchasing an additional 257,101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of STERIS by 71.7% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 603,879 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $132,763,000 after purchasing an additional 252,200 shares during the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other STERIS news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the director now directly owns 582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $139,493.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was 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 directly owns 42,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total value of $113,368.64. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STE stock opened at $232.76 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.33. The firm has a market cap of $23.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.93 and a beta of 0.84. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $195.47 and a 52 week high of $248.24. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $238.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $225.88.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.16. STERIS had a net margin of 7.36% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The company had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.00 EPS. STERIS’s revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.06 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This is an increase from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.69%.

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.