STERIS plc $STE Shares Bought by Congress Asset Management Co.

Congress Asset Management Co. increased its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 6.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 141,722 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,498 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. owned approximately 0.14% of STERIS worth $35,929,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of STERIS by 0.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,213,521 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $3,022,114,000 after acquiring an additional 50,393 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in STERIS by 4.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,354,839 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,077,564,000 after purchasing an additional 166,736 shares during the last quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd increased its position in STERIS by 36.0% during the second quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 2,100,099 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $504,486,000 after purchasing an additional 556,088 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in STERIS by 16.4% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,567,238 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $387,797,000 after purchasing an additional 221,199 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in STERIS by 4.9% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,280,142 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $316,758,000 after purchasing an additional 59,443 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In related news, Director Cynthia L. Feldmann sold 3,098 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.21, for a total transaction of $734,876.58. Following the sale, the director owned 705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $167,233.05. The trade was a 81.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on STE. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $275.20.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of STE opened at $222.04 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $21.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.97 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $245.43 and a 200-day moving average of $249.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $204.90 and a 52 week high of $269.44.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.53 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53. STERIS had a net margin of 12.15% and a return on equity of 14.34%. The company’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.32 earnings per share. STERIS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.150-10.300 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. STERIS’s payout ratio is 35.15%.

About STERIS

STERIS Corporation (NYSE: STE) is a global provider of infection prevention, contamination control and procedural products and services for the healthcare, life sciences, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. The company develops, manufactures and supports a broad portfolio of equipment and consumables designed to reduce risk of infection, maintain sterile environments and support critical clinical and manufacturing procedures.

Its offerings include sterilization and decontamination systems, instrument washers and washers-disinfectors, endoscope reprocessing solutions, surgical equipment and procedural disposables, and contamination-control products for cleanrooms and laboratories.