Federated Hermes Inc. Purchases 13,150 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 328,520 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 13,150 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. owned approximately 0.33% of STERIS worth $67,531,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in STERIS by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,359,748 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $483,775,000 after purchasing an additional 56,123 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in STERIS by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,261,927 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $257,585,000 after buying an additional 172,795 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in STERIS by 45.1% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,216,821 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $250,130,000 after buying an additional 378,252 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in STERIS during the fourth quarter worth $238,836,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its position in STERIS by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,131,374 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $232,565,000 after acquiring an additional 33,618 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

STERIS Price Performance

Shares of STE stock opened at $213.16 on Monday. STERIS plc has a fifty-two week low of $197.82 and a fifty-two week high of $248.24. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $20.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.26 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $223.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $220.44.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.33 by ($0.01). STERIS had a return on equity of 13.91% and a net margin of 8.66%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.07%. STERIS’s payout ratio is presently 48.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on STE. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $240.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of STERIS from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.75.

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.