Sanctuary Advisors LLC Trims Stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC decreased its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,018 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 572 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in STERIS were worth $1,945,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in STERIS by 13.7% during the 2nd 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 purchasing an additional 778,613 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of STERIS by 0.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,303,625 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $556,786,000 after buying an additional 17,007 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its position in shares of STERIS by 29.7% in the second 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 buying an additional 263,383 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 9.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,114,224 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $270,230,000 after buying an additional 96,336 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 12.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 840,194 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $184,439,000 after buying an additional 95,412 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 1,682 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.32, for a total value of $365,532.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,471,363.04. This represents a 12.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

STERIS Stock Performance

STERIS stock opened at $207.01 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 1.55. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $197.82 and a 12 month high of $248.24. The company has a market cap of $20.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.26 and a beta of 0.83. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $219.75 and its 200-day moving average is $226.97.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.02. STERIS had a net margin of 8.02% and a return on equity of 13.78%. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. STERIS’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.1 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on STE shares. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a report on Monday, November 18th. KeyCorp increased their target price on STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com lowered shares of STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded shares of STERIS from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $230.00 to $260.00 in a report on Thursday, October 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $262.50.

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.