LaFleur & Godfrey LLC Sells 2,903 Shares of STERIS plc $STE

LaFleur & Godfrey LLC trimmed its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 7.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,024 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,903 shares during the period. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC’s holdings in STERIS were worth $8,626,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of STE. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of STERIS by 259.0% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 51,602 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $13,165,000 after acquiring an additional 37,228 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of STERIS by 5.4% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 98,487 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $24,366,000 after purchasing an additional 5,072 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of STERIS by 9.4% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,039,351 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $257,157,000 after purchasing an additional 89,250 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in STERIS by 5.3% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 693,116 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $171,505,000 after purchasing an additional 34,981 shares during the period. Finally, Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co purchased a new stake in STERIS in the third quarter worth $2,480,000. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered STERIS from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 26th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.20.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STE opened at $212.98 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market cap of $20.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.70 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $225.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $244.63. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $209.61 and a 52 week high of $269.44.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.53 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.34% and a net margin of 12.15%.During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.32 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,098 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.21, for a total value of $734,876.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $167,233.05. The trade was a 81.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About STERIS

STERIS Corporation (NYSE: STE) is a global provider of infection prevention, contamination control and procedural products and services for the healthcare, life sciences, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. The company develops, manufactures and supports a broad portfolio of equipment and consumables designed to reduce risk of infection, maintain sterile environments and support critical clinical and manufacturing procedures.

Its offerings include sterilization and decontamination systems, instrument washers and washers-disinfectors, endoscope reprocessing solutions, surgical equipment and procedural disposables, and contamination-control products for cleanrooms and laboratories.