Seven Eight Capital LP Takes Position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 4,652 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,021,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in STERIS during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp raised its stake in STERIS by 77.9% during the 1st quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 121 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC lifted its position in STERIS by 112.7% in the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 134 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in STERIS in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Pingora Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of STERIS during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

STERIS Stock Performance

NYSE:STE opened at $236.98 on Friday. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $195.47 and a fifty-two week high of $248.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $23.43 billion, a PE ratio of 62.04 and a beta of 0.83. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $236.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $225.55.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.00 earnings per share. STERIS’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 5th were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This is an increase from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 5th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $139,493.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now owns 582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $139,493.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total transaction of $5,763,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.14% 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.