Summit Trail Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Summit Trail Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 80.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,571 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 698 shares during the period. Summit Trail Advisors LLC’s holdings in STERIS were worth $323,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in STERIS by 171.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 838,569 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $191,370,000 after buying an additional 529,308 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 7,418.7% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 309,771 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $75,132,000 after acquiring an additional 305,651 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its position in shares of STERIS by 400.4% during the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 224,741 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $46,198,000 after purchasing an additional 179,829 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in STERIS in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,251,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its holdings in STERIS by 2,123.2% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 113,672 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $27,574,000 after purchasing an additional 108,559 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on STE shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $240.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on STERIS from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $258.75.

STERIS Trading Down 2.0 %

STE opened at $219.00 on Thursday. STERIS plc has a one year low of $197.82 and a one year high of $248.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.62 billion, a PE ratio of 46.50 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $212.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.13.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.33 by ($0.01). STERIS had a return on equity of 13.91% and a net margin of 8.66%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 1,682 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.32, for a total value of $365,532.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,471,363.04. This represents a 12.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

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.