Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Purchases 778,613 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 13.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,442,805 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 778,613 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 6.52% of STERIS worth $1,414,453,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new position in STERIS in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp increased its stake in STERIS by 77.9% during the first 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 during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC raised its position in STERIS by 112.7% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 134 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Pingora Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of STERIS in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Buying and Selling at STERIS

In related news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 42,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,603,710. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total value of $113,368.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 582 shares in the company, valued at $139,493.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

STERIS Stock Performance

STE stock opened at $244.83 on Monday. STERIS plc has a 1-year low of $195.47 and a 1-year high of $248.24. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $234.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $225.20. The company has a market capitalization of $24.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.09 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 2.33 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.16. The business 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 company’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.00 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This is a boost from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 5th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is 59.69%.

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.