Amalgamated Bank Sells 405 Shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Amalgamated Bank lowered its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,059 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 405 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in STERIS were worth $4,404,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in STERIS in the 2nd quarter worth $454,000. GDS Wealth Management boosted its holdings in STERIS by 11.6% in the 2nd quarter. GDS Wealth Management now owns 51,092 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $11,217,000 after buying an additional 5,292 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in STERIS by 12.8% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 840,194 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $184,439,000 after buying an additional 95,412 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in STERIS by 13.7% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,442,805 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,414,453,000 after buying an additional 778,613 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its holdings in STERIS by 154.7% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 191 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total transaction of $5,763,004.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total value of $5,763,004.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,603,710. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 473 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.68, for a total transaction of $113,368.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $139,493.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of STERIS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of STERIS from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $246.00.

STERIS Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:STE opened at $236.98 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.33, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. STERIS plc has a 12 month low of $195.47 and a 12 month high of $248.24. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $236.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $225.53. The company has a market cap of $23.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.04 and a beta of 0.83.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.16. STERIS had a net margin of 7.36% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.00 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that STERIS plc will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 5th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. This is a positive change from STERIS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. STERIS’s payout ratio is 59.69%.

About STERIS

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.