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

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 20.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 560,902 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 141,996 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.57% of STERIS worth $115,299,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of STERIS by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,303,625 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $556,786,000 after acquiring an additional 17,007 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of STERIS by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,119,643 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $230,160,000 after buying an additional 5,419 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of STERIS in the 4th quarter valued at about $223,987,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of STERIS by 171.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 838,569 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $191,370,000 after buying an additional 529,308 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in STERIS by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 569,837 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $117,136,000 after acquiring an additional 18,384 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on STE. 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 reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $240.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, STERIS currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.75.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STE opened at $225.44 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 2.13. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $220.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $222.24. The stock has a market cap of $22.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.86 and a beta of 0.92. STERIS plc has a one year low of $197.82 and a one year high of $248.24.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its 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 net margin of 8.66% and a return on equity of 13.91%. As a group, research analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.