STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $275.20.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on STE. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th.

STERIS Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of STE opened at $250.55 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $256.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $251.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.94 and a beta of 1.03. STERIS has a 12-month low of $204.90 and a 12-month high of $269.44.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.53 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53. STERIS had a net margin of 12.15% and a return on equity of 14.34%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.32 earnings per share. STERIS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.150-10.300 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that STERIS will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.15%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of STERIS by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,286,535 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $3,114,882,000 after buying an additional 73,014 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in STERIS by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,614,840 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,169,957,000 after purchasing an additional 260,001 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,523,620 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $637,259,000 after purchasing an additional 14,151 shares during the period. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd increased its holdings in shares of STERIS by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 2,249,511 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $570,296,000 after purchasing an additional 120,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 37.2% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,623,234 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $411,522,000 after purchasing an additional 440,164 shares during the period. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About STERIS

STERIS Corporation (NYSE: STE) is a global provider of infection prevention, contamination control and procedural products and services for the healthcare, life sciences, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. The company develops, manufactures and supports a broad portfolio of equipment and consumables designed to reduce risk of infection, maintain sterile environments and support critical clinical and manufacturing procedures.

Its offerings include sterilization and decontamination systems, instrument washers and washers-disinfectors, endoscope reprocessing solutions, surgical equipment and procedural disposables, and contamination-control products for cleanrooms and laboratories.