111 Capital Invests $1.24 Million in STERIS plc $STE

111 Capital purchased a new position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 5,149 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,237,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in STE. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd acquired a new position in STERIS in the 1st quarter valued at about $349,950,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of STERIS by 55.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,520,479 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $344,617,000 after buying an additional 540,999 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of STERIS by 9.1% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,439,349 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,232,828,000 after buying an additional 452,146 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of STERIS in the first quarter valued at approximately $65,435,000. Finally, Generation Investment Management LLP raised its holdings in STERIS by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 3,354,545 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $760,308,000 after acquiring an additional 170,392 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:STE opened at $242.54 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.89 billion, a PE ratio of 37.14 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $243.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $235.22. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $200.98 and a 12 month high of $253.00.

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

STERIS Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $798,564.96. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 7,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,799,762.04. This represents a 30.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,495 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.56, for a total value of $844,252.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $170,299.80. This represents a 83.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 18,709 shares of company stock worth $4,546,940 over the last three months. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on STE. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 14th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $273.50.

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.