Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC Sells 3,240 Shares of STERIS plc $STE

Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC lowered its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 100,581 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,240 shares during the quarter. STERIS comprises approximately 2.6% of Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC’s holdings in STERIS were worth $25,499,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its position in STERIS by 30.2% during the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 164 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in STERIS by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,588 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $888,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its position in STERIS by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 12,329 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,051,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in STERIS by 34.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 174 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in STERIS by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,953 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on STE. Weiss Ratings cut STERIS from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.20.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STE opened at $223.50 on Thursday. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $209.98 and a 12 month high of $269.44. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $229.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $245.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market cap of $21.92 billion, a PE ratio of 31.17 and a beta of 1.07.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.53 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.53. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.34% and a net margin of 12.15%.During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. STERIS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.150-10.300 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.15%.

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In related news, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.21, for a total value of $734,876.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 705 shares in the company, valued at $167,233.05. This trade represents a 81.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.