Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Reduces Stock Holdings in STERIS plc $STE

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lessened its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 53,452 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 5,074 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio owned 0.05% of STERIS worth $12,840,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in STERIS by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,957,852 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,710,247,000 after purchasing an additional 46,628 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in STERIS by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,439,349 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,232,828,000 after buying an additional 452,146 shares during the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 3,354,545 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $760,308,000 after buying an additional 170,392 shares during the period. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of STERIS during the 1st quarter worth about $349,950,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in STERIS by 55.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,520,479 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $344,617,000 after purchasing an additional 540,999 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 14th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $273.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total transaction of $798,564.96. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 7,221 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,799,762.04. The trade was a 30.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total value of $1,909,667.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 5,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,448,929.62. This represents a 56.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,709 shares of company stock valued at $4,546,940 over the last three months. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STE opened at $248.82 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $24.51 billion, a PE ratio of 38.10 and a beta of 0.95. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $200.98 and a 52 week high of $253.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 2.22. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $241.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $234.61.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.02. STERIS had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.61%.The company had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders 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 an increase from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.59%.

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.