Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Makes New $203,000 Investment in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 839 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in STERIS during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $206,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in STERIS by 24.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 13,410 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,252,000 after purchasing an additional 2,647 shares in the last quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp increased its stake in STERIS by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp now owns 15,743 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,818,000 after purchasing an additional 1,758 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in STERIS by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,114,224 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $270,230,000 after purchasing an additional 96,336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in STERIS by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,652 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,856,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, November 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.00.

STERIS Price Performance

NYSE STE opened at $221.19 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $231.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $228.20. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $195.47 and a 52 week high of $248.24. The company has a market cap of $21.83 billion, a PE ratio of 50.74 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.02. STERIS had a net margin of 8.02% and a return on equity of 13.78%. The business had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. STERIS’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.15 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. STERIS’s payout ratio is 52.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction 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 approximately $10,603,710. The trade was a 35.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

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.