STERIS plc $STE Stock: Machina Capital S.A.S. Increases Stake

Machina Capital S.A.S. raised its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 633.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 10,608 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 9,162 shares during the quarter. Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings in STERIS were worth $2,228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new position in shares of STERIS during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of STERIS by 1,130.0% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 123 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new stake in STERIS during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Community Financial Services Group LLC lifted its position in STERIS by 50.0% during the third quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC now owns 216 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other STERIS news, CFO Karen Burton sold 5,880 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.62, for a total transaction of $1,503,045.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 12,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,311,812.72. The trade was a 31.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mohsen Sohi sold 4,893 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.22, for a total transaction of $1,239,005.46. Following the sale, the director owned 24,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,154,512.10. The trade was a 16.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.12% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Stock Down 1.1%

STERIS stock opened at $253.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.05. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $222.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $224.61. The company has a market cap of $24.62 billion, a PE ratio of 23.53 and a beta of 0.86. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $195.14 and a fifty-two week high of $269.44.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.26. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.80% and a net margin of 13.41%. The firm had revenue of $1.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.47 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 11.46 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 17th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 17th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is 32.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

STE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of STERIS from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, October 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded STERIS from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley raised STERIS from an “overweight” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $276.33.

STERIS Company Profile

STERIS plc (NYSE: STE) provides infection prevention and procedural products and services for healthcare, pharmaceutical, research, and other industries. Its offerings include sterilizers, washers and other equipment used to clean and sterilize medical devices and surgical instruments, as well as products for operating rooms and endoscopy procedures. The company also provides equipment installation, maintenance, repair, and training, along with contract sterilization and laboratory testing services.