Prudential PLC Increases Stake in STERIS plc $STE

Prudential PLC boosted its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 17.0% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 50,470 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,328 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC’s holdings in STERIS were worth $12,124,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of STE. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 661 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in STERIS by 3.5% in the first quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,611 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $365,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in STERIS by 0.9% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 6,999 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,586,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in STERIS by 4.7% during the first quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 1,410 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $320,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT increased its stake in STERIS by 2.0% during the first quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 3,305 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $749,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE STE opened at $257.09 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $200.98 and a fifty-two week high of $268.30. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $246.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $241.14. The stock has a market cap of $25.23 billion, a PE ratio of 39.37 and a beta of 1.02.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.43 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 14.17%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.14 earnings per share. STERIS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.150-10.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th will be given a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 18th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on STE shares. Wall Street Zen raised STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Seven 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.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $273.50.

Insider Activity

In other STERIS news, VP John Adam Zangerle sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.14, for a total transaction of $3,977,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 33,669 shares in the company, valued at $8,926,998.66. This trade represents a 30.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 159 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.82, for a total value of $38,449.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 51,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,356,034.72. The trade was a 0.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 20,195 shares of company stock worth $5,312,571 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.07% 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.