Insider Selling: STERIS (NYSE:STE) Director Sells 3,098 Shares of Stock

STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) Director Cynthia Feldmann sold 3,098 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.21, for a total transaction of $734,876.58. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 705 shares in the company, valued at $167,233.05. This represents a 81.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

STERIS Trading Down 3.4%

Shares of STERIS stock traded down $8.02 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $230.49. 983,236 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 793,669. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.15 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a fifty day moving average of $254.86 and a 200-day moving average of $251.61. STERIS plc has a 52-week low of $204.90 and a 52-week high of $269.44. The company has a current ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53. STERIS had a net margin of 12.15% and a return on equity of 14.34%. The company’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.32 earnings per share. STERIS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.150-10.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. STERIS’s payout ratio is 35.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On STERIS

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in STERIS by 46.1% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,106 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $251,000 after buying an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of STERIS by 32.3% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 242,732 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $55,015,000 after acquiring an additional 59,264 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in STERIS by 16.1% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,303 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $522,000 after buying an additional 319 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP lifted its position in STERIS by 40.0% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 8,300 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,881,000 after acquiring an additional 2,372 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of STERIS by 38.9% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 20,716 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $4,695,000 after buying an additional 5,803 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on STE. Wall Street Zen downgraded STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, STERIS presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.20.

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.