STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) Shares Bought by Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 5.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 975 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in STERIS were worth $201,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in STERIS by 171.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 838,569 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $191,370,000 after buying an additional 529,308 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of STERIS by 30.8% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 10,970 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $2,275,000 after acquiring an additional 2,583 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in STERIS by 52.0% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 12,071 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $2,928,000 after purchasing an additional 4,132 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in STERIS in the third quarter valued at about $9,949,000. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in STERIS by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 4,283 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,039,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler increased their target price on STERIS from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $240.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, STERIS has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.75.

STERIS Stock Performance

STE opened at $227.04 on Friday. STERIS plc has a 1-year low of $197.82 and a 1-year high of $248.24. The stock has a market cap of $22.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.20 and a beta of 0.92. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $219.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $222.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.40.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.33 by ($0.01). STERIS had a net margin of 8.66% and a return on equity of 13.91%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. STERIS’s payout ratio is currently 48.41%.

About STERIS

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.