Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Lowers Position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. decreased its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 0.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 702,898 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 5,108 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.71% of STERIS worth $170,481,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in STERIS in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in STERIS during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in STERIS by 154.7% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 191 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of STERIS in the second quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, American National Bank purchased a new stake in shares of STERIS in the second quarter valued at about $53,000. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at STERIS

In related news, SVP Cary L. Majors sold 1,682 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.32, for a total transaction of $365,532.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,471,363.04. The trade was a 12.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 $10,603,710. The trade was a 35.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

STERIS Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:STE traded up $0.30 during trading on Thursday, hitting $217.55. 198,496 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 497,286. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $197.82 and a 52 week high of $248.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a market cap of $21.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.63 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $223.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $227.96.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler raised shares of STERIS from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $230.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $265.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a report on Monday, November 18th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of STERIS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $262.50.

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.