Principal Financial Group Inc. Grows Stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 9.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,114,224 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 96,336 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 1.13% of STERIS worth $270,230,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of STERIS by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 20,691 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $4,652,000 after acquiring an additional 346 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in STERIS by 4.3% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,570 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,478,000 after acquiring an additional 269 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 in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in STERIS by 3.3% during the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 23,415 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $5,264,000 after purchasing an additional 741 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of STERIS by 52.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,729 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $389,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

STERIS Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE STE traded up $4.54 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $220.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 750,311 shares, compared to its average volume of 489,117. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $232.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $227.52. The stock has a market cap of $21.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.20 and a beta of 0.85. 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 12 month low of $195.47 and a 12 month high of $248.24.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.03. STERIS had a return on equity of 13.91% and a net margin of 8.02%. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is currently 52.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on STE shares. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday. 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 report on Thursday, October 24th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of STERIS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $253.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 42,930 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,603,710. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.