Clearbridge Investments LLC Cuts Position in STERIS plc $STE

Clearbridge Investments LLC lessened its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 174,837 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 5,428 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned about 0.18% of STERIS worth $44,325,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in STERIS by 259.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 51,602 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $13,165,000 after buying an additional 37,228 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in STERIS by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,039,351 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $257,157,000 after buying an additional 89,250 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in STERIS by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 693,116 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $171,505,000 after buying an additional 34,981 shares in the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co purchased a new position in STERIS during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,480,000. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new position in STERIS during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,163,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard C. Breeden sold 1,481 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.51, for a total transaction of $310,284.31. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 38,964 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,163,347.64. This trade represents a 3.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel A. Carestio sold 1,374 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.00, for a total value of $291,288.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 63,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,493,164. This represents a 2.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 5,909 shares of company stock valued at $1,257,083 over the last three months. 1.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

STERIS Price Performance

NYSE:STE opened at $212.42 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.79 and a beta of 0.93. STERIS plc has a 1 year low of $195.14 and a 1 year high of $269.44. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $216.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $238.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.54.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.86 by ($0.03). STERIS had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The company had revenue of $1.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.74 earnings per share. STERIS’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. STERIS has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.300 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 11.18 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings cut STERIS from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price objective on STERIS from $291.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, STERIS currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.00.

STERIS Profile

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.