Middleton & Co. Inc. MA Sells 2,460 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Middleton & Co. Inc. MA lowered its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,708 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 2,460 shares during the period. STERIS accounts for approximately 1.3% of Middleton & Co. Inc. MA's holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA's holdings in STERIS were worth $11,814,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd grew its holdings in shares of STERIS by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 69,567 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $16,602,000 after acquiring an additional 13,651 shares during the period. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of STERIS during the third quarter valued at approximately $219,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in STERIS by 7,418.7% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 309,771 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $75,132,000 after purchasing an additional 305,651 shares during the period. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in STERIS by 1.7% in the third quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,281 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,523,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverwater Partners LLC lifted its position in STERIS by 21.7% during the third quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC now owns 4,847 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,138,000 after buying an additional 864 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of STERIS 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 42,930 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,603,710. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were 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 owns 42,930 shares in the company, valued at $10,603,710. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total transaction of $113,368.64. Following the sale, the director now owns 582 shares of the company's stock, valued at $139,493.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.14% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp increased their price target 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 Wednesday, August 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. StockNews.com raised STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $253.00.

STERIS Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of STE stock traded down $3.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $224.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 409,567 shares, compared to its average volume of 474,136. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.33. STERIS plc has a 52-week low of $195.47 and a 52-week high of $248.24. The stock has a market cap of $22.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.61 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $234.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $226.34.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.16. STERIS had a net margin of 7.36% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.00 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

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

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.