ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. Lowers Position in STERIS plc $STE

ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. cut its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 2.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,153 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 109 shares during the quarter. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V.’s holdings in STERIS were worth $998,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in STERIS by 416.0% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 129 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in STERIS by 4,733.3% during the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 145 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in STERIS during the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in STERIS during the 1st quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in STERIS by 503.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 199 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, September 14th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Saturday, September 27th. KeyCorp raised their target price on STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $273.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total transaction of $1,909,667.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 5,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,448,929.62. This trade represents a 56.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $798,564.96. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 7,221 shares in the company, valued at $1,799,762.04. This trade represents a 30.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,709 shares of company stock worth $4,546,940 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.07% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Price Performance

STE stock opened at $242.54 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.53. STERIS plc has a 1 year low of $200.98 and a 1 year high of $253.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.14 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s 50-day moving average is $243.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $235.29.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.02. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.61%.The business had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th were given a dividend of $0.63 per share. This is a boost from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is 38.59%.

STERIS 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.