Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd Sells 204 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd decreased its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 8,000 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 204 shares during the period. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd’s holdings in STERIS were worth $1,759,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of STE. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of STERIS during the fourth quarter worth $220,954,000. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its position in STERIS by 419.1% during the fourth quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 964,935 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $211,430,000 after purchasing an additional 779,038 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in STERIS by 58.4% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 586,380 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $128,663,000 after purchasing an additional 216,113 shares during the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new position in STERIS during the fourth quarter valued at $32,687,000. Finally, Findlay Park Partners LLP lifted its position in STERIS by 23.2% during the fourth quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP now owns 604,952 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $132,999,000 after purchasing an additional 113,936 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of STERIS stock traded down $0.83 during trading on Friday, hitting $225.98. The stock had a trading volume of 8,909 shares, compared to its average volume of 487,336. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $216.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $217.38. The stock has a market cap of $22.33 billion, a PE ratio of 59.37 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 3.06 and a quick ratio of 2.34. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $195.47 and a 12 month high of $254.00.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 6.95% and a return on equity of 13.73%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 12th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 12th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on STE. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 price objective (up previously from $220.00) on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, February 9th. TheStreet upgraded shares of STERIS from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 11th. Finally, KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of STERIS in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $253.00 target price for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $241.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 1,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.64, for a total value of $267,312.56. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,546,660.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other STERIS news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 1,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.64, for a total transaction of $267,312.56. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,546,660.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jacqueline B. Kosecoff sold 4,584 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.53, for a total transaction of $1,061,333.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,762 shares of company stock valued at $1,798,477 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.95% of the company’s stock.

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.