Hantz Financial Services Inc. Trims Holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. cut its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 81.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,908 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 43,289 shares during the quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in STERIS were worth $2,403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in STERIS by 11.9% in the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,972 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $433,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 9,322 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $2,096,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of STERIS by 215.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 12,330 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $2,772,000 after purchasing an additional 8,417 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of STERIS by 53.7% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 4,164 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $936,000 after purchasing an additional 1,455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its stake in STERIS by 2.0% in the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 32,704 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $7,341,000 after purchasing an additional 629 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

STERIS Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of STE traded up $1.59 on Friday, hitting $219.06. 342,972 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 728,088. STERIS plc has a one year low of $195.47 and a one year high of $248.24. The company has a market capitalization of $21.62 billion, a PE ratio of 50.01 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $225.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $228.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.41.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. STERIS had a return on equity of 13.78% and a net margin of 8.02%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on STE. StockNews.com cut shares of STERIS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Piper Sandler raised STERIS from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently 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 firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total value of $5,763,004.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,930 shares in the company, valued at $10,603,710. This trade represents a 35.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 1,682 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,471,363.04. This represents a 12.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company's stock.

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.