Mizuho Securities USA LLC Boosts Holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 191.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,232 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 14,609 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in STERIS were worth $5,392,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. West Coast Financial LLC boosted its position in STERIS by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $398,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,175 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,356,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 763 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $172,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 16.5% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, Waterloo Capital L.P. lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. now owns 1,916 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $421,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at STERIS

In related news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the 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 approximately $10,603,710. This represents a 35.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

STE has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of STERIS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of STERIS from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $230.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. 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. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and set a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $253.00.

STERIS Stock Performance

STERIS stock traded down $1.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $220.12. 540,421 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 688,436. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 1.55. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $195.47 and a fifty-two week high of $248.24. The company has a market capitalization of $21.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.26 and a beta of 0.85. The firm's fifty day moving average is $230.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $228.42.

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

STERIS Announces Dividend

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

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.