Consolidated Planning Corp Buys 2,882 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Consolidated Planning Corp boosted its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 26.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,985 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,882 shares during the period. Consolidated Planning Corp’s holdings in STERIS were worth $3,070,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in STE. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in STERIS by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,864,606 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $2,608,434,000 after acquiring an additional 53,526 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of STERIS by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,811,818 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,277,728,000 after purchasing an additional 77,152 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of STERIS by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,738,630 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $390,880,000 after purchasing an additional 120,616 shares during the period. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP raised its position in shares of STERIS by 23.5% during the 1st quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 1,485,578 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $333,988,000 after purchasing an additional 282,387 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of STERIS by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,017,888 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $223,467,000 after purchasing an additional 8,601 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In other news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total value of $113,368.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on STE shares. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 target price (up from $220.00) on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $246.00.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:STE traded down $1.43 on Wednesday, reaching $241.72. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 85,394 shares, compared to its average volume of 474,077. STERIS plc has a 52-week low of $195.47 and a 52-week high of $245.81. The company has a market cap of $23.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 63.71 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $229.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $224.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.33.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.27 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 7.36% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The business’s revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.00 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 5th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 5th. This is a positive change from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.45%.

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.