Congress Asset Management Co. Raises Holdings in STERIS plc $STE

Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 122,943 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. owned 0.12% of STERIS worth $29,533,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in STERIS by 416.0% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 129 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 4,733.3% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 145 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in shares of STERIS during the first quarter worth about $37,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in STERIS during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in STERIS by 503.0% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 199 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

STERIS Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE STE opened at $248.82 on Friday. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $200.98 and a fifty-two week high of $253.00. The company has a market cap of $24.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.10 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $241.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $234.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 2.22.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.02. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.61%.The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.03 earnings per share. STERIS’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th were given a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. This is a boost from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. STERIS’s payout ratio is currently 38.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

STE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $273.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other STERIS news, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,495 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.56, for a total transaction of $844,252.20. Following the sale, the director directly owned 705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $170,299.80. This trade represents a 83.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total transaction of $798,564.96. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 7,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,799,762.04. The trade was a 30.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 18,709 shares of company stock worth $4,546,940. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

STERIS Company 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.