Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 11.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,684 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,019 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in STERIS were worth $1,689,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in STE. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 66.5% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,085 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $896,000 after purchasing an additional 1,632 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in STERIS during the third quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in STERIS by 46.7% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 17,243 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,783,000 after buying an additional 5,490 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in STERIS by 32.0% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 94,148 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $20,688,000 after buying an additional 22,819 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in STERIS by 190.3% during the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 21,122 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,635,000 after buying an additional 13,845 shares during the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

STERIS Stock Performance

STE opened at $203.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 2.43 and a quick ratio of 1.49. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $221.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $216.80. STERIS plc has a 1-year low of $181.78 and a 1-year high of $254.00. The firm has a market cap of $20.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.71 and a beta of 0.79.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.05. STERIS had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 13.67%. The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.02 earnings per share. STERIS’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 8.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.02%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is 36.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on STE. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, February 9th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, February 8th. TheStreet raised shares of STERIS from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, KeyCorp started coverage on shares of STERIS in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $253.00 price target for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.60.

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.