Edgestream Partners L.P. Makes New $6.22 Million Investment in STERIS plc $STE

Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 28,117 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,218,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in STERIS by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,286,535 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $3,114,882,000 after buying an additional 73,014 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in STERIS by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,614,840 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,169,957,000 after acquiring an additional 260,001 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,523,620 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $637,259,000 after acquiring an additional 14,151 shares in the last quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 2,249,511 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $570,296,000 after acquiring an additional 120,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 25.7% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,863,139 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $411,995,000 after acquiring an additional 380,504 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP John Adam Zangerle sold 1,419 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.28, for a total transaction of $296,968.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 35,259 shares in the company, valued at $7,379,003.52. The trade was a 3.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 1,374 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.00, for a total value of $291,288.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 63,647 shares in the company, valued at $13,493,164. This trade represents a 2.11% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 7,328 shares of company stock valued at $1,554,051 in the last ninety days. 1.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings cut STERIS from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. UBS Group started coverage on STERIS in a report on Tuesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $275.00 price target on the stock. KeyCorp cut their price objective on shares of STERIS from $291.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $277.25.

STERIS Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of STE opened at $231.32 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business has a fifty day moving average of $212.75 and a 200 day moving average of $226.54. The company has a market cap of $22.54 billion, a PE ratio of 29.17 and a beta of 0.92. STERIS plc has a 52-week low of $195.14 and a 52-week high of $269.44.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The company’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.74 EPS. STERIS has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.300 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 11.18 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a $0.69 dividend. This is an increase from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.78%.

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.