Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Grows Position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 5.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 573,653 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,246 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned 0.58% of STERIS worth $125,940,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of STE. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of STERIS by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,864,606 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,608,434,000 after acquiring an additional 53,526 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in STERIS by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,738,630 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $390,880,000 after purchasing an additional 120,616 shares during the last quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP raised its position in STERIS by 23.5% in the first quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 1,485,578 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $333,988,000 after purchasing an additional 282,387 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its stake in STERIS by 29.7% during the second quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,150,517 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $251,663,000 after purchasing an additional 263,383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of STERIS by 0.9% during the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,017,888 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $223,467,000 after buying an additional 8,601 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total transaction of $113,368.64. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total transaction of $113,368.64. Following the transaction, the director now owns 582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total value of $5,763,004.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:STE opened at $243.68 on Tuesday. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $195.47 and a 52 week high of $248.24. The company’s 50 day moving average is $234.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $225.27. The company has a market cap of $24.09 billion, a PE ratio of 63.79 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a current ratio of 2.33, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.16. STERIS had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 7.36%. The company had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.00 EPS. STERIS’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 5th. This is an increase from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. STERIS’s payout ratio is currently 59.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on STE. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, STERIS has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $246.00.

About STERIS

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.