STERIS (NYSE:STE) Rating Lowered to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

STERIS (NYSE:STE) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, January 9th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.20.

STERIS Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $219.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.48 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The stock has a market cap of $21.57 billion, a PE ratio of 30.67 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $242.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $248.80. STERIS has a 1 year low of $204.90 and a 1 year high of $269.44.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.53 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.53. STERIS had a net margin of 12.15% and a return on equity of 14.34%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. STERIS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.150-10.300 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that STERIS will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 4th quarter worth approximately $320,298,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings 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 last quarter. Boston Partners purchased a new stake in STERIS during the third quarter worth $158,982,000. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd grew 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 last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in STERIS by 246.4% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 553,834 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $137,041,000 after purchasing an additional 393,970 shares during the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.