Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 1,265 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 8.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 13,611 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 1,265 shares during the quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in STERIS were worth $2,798,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,114,224 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $270,230,000 after acquiring an additional 96,336 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in STERIS by 0.7% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 37,931 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $9,200,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI bought a new position in shares of STERIS in the third quarter valued at approximately $223,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of STERIS by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 551,453 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $133,749,000 after purchasing an additional 6,334 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its stake in shares of STERIS by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 9,944 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $2,412,000 after purchasing an additional 438 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company's stock.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on STE shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of STERIS from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $240.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, STERIS has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $258.75.

STERIS Price Performance

NYSE:STE traded up $1.29 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $224.35. 503,563 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 503,714. STERIS plc has a 52 week low of $197.82 and a 52 week high of $248.24. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $222.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $221.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market cap of $22.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.63 and a beta of 0.92.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.33 by ($0.01). STERIS had a return on equity of 13.91% and a net margin of 8.66%. On average, research analysts anticipate that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 20th. STERIS's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.41%.

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.