Versant Capital Management Inc Acquires 181 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 2,262.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 189 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc’s holdings in STERIS were worth $41,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of STE. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in STERIS by 9.4% during the first quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 570 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $128,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its holdings in STERIS by 0.4% during the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 13,857 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,115,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in STERIS by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 716 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $157,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund boosted its holdings in STERIS by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 3,520 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $774,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp boosted its holdings in STERIS by 77.9% during the first quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 121 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other STERIS news, Director Jacqueline B. Kosecoff sold 4,584 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.53, for a total value of $1,061,333.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Jacqueline B. Kosecoff sold 4,584 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.53, for a total transaction of $1,061,333.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Renato Tamaro sold 1,154 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.64, for a total transaction of $267,312.56. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,677 shares in the company, valued at $1,546,660.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,762 shares of company stock valued at $1,798,477. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of NYSE STE traded down $0.80 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $238.38. 155,406 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 485,243. STERIS plc has a twelve month low of $195.47 and a twelve month high of $243.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 2.36 and a current ratio of 3.08. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $224.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $222.69. The company has a market cap of $23.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.64 and a beta of 0.83.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.05. STERIS had a net margin of 6.95% and a return on equity of 13.73%. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.00 earnings per share. STERIS’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 5th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 5th. This is a boost from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $225.00 target price (up previously from $220.00) on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $241.60.

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.