Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC Has $2.26 Million Stock Position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 67.7% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 10,305 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,159 shares during the quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC’s holdings in STERIS were worth $2,262,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of STE. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in STERIS by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 327,596 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $71,920,000 after acquiring an additional 3,848 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of STERIS by 1.6% in the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 55,070 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $12,090,000 after purchasing an additional 878 shares during the period. Executive Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Executive Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,052 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $2,207,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in STERIS by 19.0% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,166 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in STERIS by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 33,327 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,216,000 after acquiring an additional 623 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total transaction of $113,368.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the director now owns 582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the firm’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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, August 8th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, STERIS presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $246.00.

STERIS Stock Performance

STE opened at $244.83 on Friday. 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 plc has a 52-week low of $195.47 and a 52-week high of $248.24. The firm has a market cap of $24.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.09 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s fifty day moving average is $234.02 and its 200-day moving average is $225.24.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.16. STERIS had a net margin of 7.36% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.00 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This is an increase from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 5th. STERIS’s payout ratio is currently 59.69%.

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.