abrdn plc Sells 2,631 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

abrdn plc trimmed its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 250,852 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,631 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc owned approximately 0.25% of STERIS worth $51,448,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT increased its holdings in STERIS by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 3,241 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $666,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. GDS Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of STERIS by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. GDS Wealth Management now owns 58,243 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $11,972,000 after buying an additional 3,088 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 400.4% in the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 224,741 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $46,198,000 after buying an additional 179,829 shares during the last quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in STERIS by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,534 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $521,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in STERIS by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 17,355 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $3,567,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 1,682 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.32, for a total value of $365,532.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at $2,471,363.04. This represents a 12.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of STERIS stock opened at $219.53 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $212.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $224.61. The stock has a market cap of $21.67 billion, a PE ratio of 50.12 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $197.82 and a 12 month high of $248.24.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.02. STERIS had a return on equity of 13.78% and a net margin of 8.02%. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.11 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. STERIS’s payout ratio is presently 52.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of STERIS from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, November 7th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research note on Monday, November 18th. StockNews.com cut STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, November 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $263.75.

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.