105,783 Shares in STERIS plc $STE Acquired by Dearborn Partners LLC

Dearborn Partners LLC purchased a new stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 105,783 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $23,392,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of STE. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of STERIS by 40.8% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 633,530 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $160,613,000 after purchasing an additional 183,680 shares in the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS acquired a new position in STERIS in the first quarter valued at about $5,506,000. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in STERIS by 116.7% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 209,923 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $53,220,000 after buying an additional 113,070 shares in the last quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC grew its stake in STERIS by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 190,483 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $48,326,000 after buying an additional 15,416 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in STERIS by 45.7% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 430,639 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $109,176,000 after acquiring an additional 134,990 shares during the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

STERIS Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of STE opened at $237.72 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $220.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $223.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.18 billion, a PE ratio of 29.06 and a beta of 0.91. STERIS plc has a 12-month low of $195.14 and a 12-month high of $269.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.49 billion. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.34% and a net margin of 13.34%.The company’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.34 earnings per share. STERIS has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.000-11.300 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 11.09 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a positive change from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. STERIS’s payout ratio is presently 30.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other STERIS news, VP John Adam Zangerle sold 1,419 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.28, for a total transaction of $296,968.32. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 35,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,379,003.52. The trade was a 3.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Richard C. Breeden sold 1,481 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.51, for a total value of $310,284.31. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 38,964 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,163,347.64. This trade represents a 3.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,386 shares of company stock valued at $2,510,846. 1.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of STERIS from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of STERIS from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $275.00 target price (up from $270.00) on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, August 7th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of STERIS from $291.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, STERIS currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $271.33.

About STERIS

STERIS Corporation (NYSE: STE) is a global provider of infection prevention, contamination control and procedural products and services for the healthcare, life sciences, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. The company develops, manufactures and supports a broad portfolio of equipment and consumables designed to reduce risk of infection, maintain sterile environments and support critical clinical and manufacturing procedures.

Its offerings include sterilization and decontamination systems, instrument washers and washers-disinfectors, endoscope reprocessing solutions, surgical equipment and procedural disposables, and contamination-control products for cleanrooms and laboratories.