ING Groep NV Purchases New Holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

ING Groep NV acquired a new position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 4,389 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,065,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in STE. West Coast Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of STERIS by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of STERIS by 0.8% during the second quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,175 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,356,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of STERIS by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 763 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $172,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 16.5% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Waterloo Capital L.P. boosted its position in shares of STERIS by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. now owns 1,916 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $421,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $220.12 on Monday. 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 plc has a 52-week low of $195.47 and a 52-week high of $248.24. The company has a market capitalization of $21.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.26 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average of $230.37 and a 200 day moving average of $228.42.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.15 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. STERIS’s payout ratio is 52.05%.

Insider Activity at STERIS

In other news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 42,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The trade was a 35.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on STE. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com downgraded STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Piper Sandler raised shares of STERIS from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, STERIS presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.00.

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.