CENTRAL TRUST Co Cuts Stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

CENTRAL TRUST Co lessened its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 16.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,223 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 239 shares during the quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in STERIS were worth $297,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in STERIS by 14.8% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,140 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,156,000 after buying an additional 663 shares during the last quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE raised its holdings in STERIS by 61.8% in the 1st quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 115,916 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $26,060,000 after acquiring an additional 44,288 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in STERIS by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 12,436 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,796,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. increased its holdings in shares of STERIS by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. now owns 22,278 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $5,009,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of STERIS by 0.5% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 237,155 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $53,317,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.00.

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In related news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other STERIS news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were 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 directly owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,603,710. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of STERIS 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 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 Down 1.4 %

STE opened at $224.12 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $234.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $226.34. The company has a market capitalization of $22.10 billion, a PE ratio of 55.61 and a beta of 0.84. STERIS plc has a 1-year low of $195.47 and a 1-year high of $248.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.33, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.00 earnings per share. STERIS’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.06 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 5th were given a $0.57 dividend. This is a positive change from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.58%.

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.