STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) Receives $246.00 Average PT from Brokerages

STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $246.00.

STE has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. StockNews.com raised STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, August 8th.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $226.90 on Thursday. STERIS has a one year low of $195.47 and a one year high of $248.24. The company has a market cap of $22.43 billion, a PE ratio of 59.40 and a beta of 0.84. 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 business has a 50-day simple moving average of $236.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $225.84.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 7.36%. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.00 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that STERIS will post 9.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 5th were paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. This is a boost from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. STERIS’s payout ratio is currently 59.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other STERIS news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total value of $113,368.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 42,930 shares in the company, valued at $10,603,710. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $139,493.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On STERIS

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of STE. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of STERIS by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 151,677 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $33,347,000 after purchasing an additional 1,860 shares during the last quarter. Caden Capital Partners LP raised its position in STERIS by 80.0% in the fourth quarter. Caden Capital Partners LP now owns 82,312 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $18,096,000 after acquiring an additional 36,576 shares in the last quarter. Winslow Asset Management Inc. raised its position in STERIS by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Winslow Asset Management Inc. now owns 33,105 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $7,278,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in STERIS by 25.1% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 2,166 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $476,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American International Group Inc. raised its position in STERIS by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 26,574 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $5,842,000 after acquiring an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

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.