Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Purchases 4,311 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 111.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,196 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,311 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in STERIS were worth $1,988,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. West Coast Financial LLC raised its position in STERIS by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $398,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 0.8% during the second quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,175 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,356,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. boosted its holdings in STERIS by 7.6% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 763 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $172,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in STERIS by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 582 shares in the company, valued at $139,493.76. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other STERIS news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total value of $5,763,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the firm’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 in the company, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STE opened at $225.82 on Tuesday. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $195.47 and a 52 week high of $248.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $22.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.03 and a beta of 0.85. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $233.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $227.40.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. STERIS had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 7.36%. The company’s revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.00 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on STE. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Piper Sandler raised STERIS from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $230.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. StockNews.com cut STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.00.

STERIS 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.