Legal & General Group Plc Sells 168,298 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Legal & General Group Plc lowered its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 21.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 606,213 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 168,298 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings in STERIS were worth $124,613,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of STE. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,359,748 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $483,775,000 after acquiring an additional 56,123 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in STERIS by 15.9% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,261,927 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $257,585,000 after purchasing an additional 172,795 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of STERIS by 45.1% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,216,821 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $250,130,000 after purchasing an additional 378,252 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of STERIS during the fourth quarter worth approximately $238,836,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in shares of STERIS by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,131,374 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $232,565,000 after buying an additional 33,618 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on STE. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Monday. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $240.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of STERIS from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $258.75.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $217.01 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $21.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.07 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $222.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $219.73. STERIS plc has a 1-year low of $197.82 and a 1-year high of $248.24.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.33 by ($0.01). STERIS had a net margin of 8.66% and a return on equity of 13.91%. As a group, analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 20th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.41%.

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.