Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC Sells 950 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC lowered its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 20.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,783 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 950 shares during the quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC’s holdings in STERIS were worth $918,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in STE. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in STERIS by 13.7% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,442,805 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,414,453,000 after acquiring an additional 778,613 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in STERIS by 7.5% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP raised its stake 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 in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its position 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 valued at $251,663,000 after purchasing an additional 263,383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in STERIS by 0.9% in the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $224.12 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.61 and a beta of 0.84. STERIS plc has a one year low of $195.47 and a one year high of $248.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 2.33 and a quick ratio of 1.49. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $234.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $226.26.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 7.36% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The firm’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.00 EPS. Analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.06 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 5th. This is an increase from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. STERIS’s payout ratio is currently 56.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of STERIS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In other news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total transaction of $5,763,004.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 42,930 shares in the company, valued at $10,603,710. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was 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 trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.