Wellington Management Group LLP Grows Stock Position in STERIS plc $STE

Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 21.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,502,897 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 629,532 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned 3.59% of STERIS worth $737,605,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in STERIS in the 4th quarter valued at about $320,298,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in STERIS by 178.6% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,183,070 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $291,704,000 after purchasing an additional 758,423 shares during the period. Boston Partners purchased a new stake in STERIS during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $158,982,000. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd boosted its holdings in STERIS by 36.0% in the second quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 2,100,099 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $504,486,000 after purchasing an additional 556,088 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of STERIS by 25.7% during 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 buying an additional 380,504 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 9th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of STERIS from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $275.00 price target (up from $270.00) on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of STERIS from $291.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $271.33.

STERIS Price Performance

NYSE:STE opened at $233.52 on Friday. STERIS plc has a 12-month low of $195.14 and a 12-month high of $269.44. The firm has a market cap of $22.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.55 and a beta of 0.91. The company’s 50-day moving average is $223.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $222.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.10. STERIS had a net margin of 13.34% and a return on equity of 14.34%. The firm had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.34 earnings per share. STERIS’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. STERIS has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.000-11.300 EPS. Research analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 11.09 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This is a positive change from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is 30.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other STERIS news, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 1,374 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.00, for a total transaction of $291,288.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 63,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,493,164. The trade was a 2.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP John Adam Zangerle sold 1,419 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.28, for a total value of $296,968.32. Following the sale, the vice president owned 35,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,379,003.52. The trade was a 3.87% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 11,386 shares of company stock worth $2,510,846 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.12% of the company’s stock.

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.