Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $270.23 Million Position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,114,224 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 96,336 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 1.13% of STERIS worth $270,230,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in STERIS by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 20,691 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $4,652,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in STERIS by 4.3% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,570 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,478,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in STERIS by 112.7% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 134 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in STERIS by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 23,415 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $5,264,000 after acquiring an additional 741 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of STERIS by 52.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,729 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $389,000 after acquiring an additional 592 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

STERIS Stock Performance

STE opened at $215.50 on Friday. STERIS plc has a 1-year low of $195.47 and a 1-year high of $248.24. The company has a market cap of $21.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.20 and a beta of 0.85. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $232.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $227.52. 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 (NYSE:STE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 7.36% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.03 EPS. On average, analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.06%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on STE. Piper Sandler upgraded STERIS from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $230.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. StockNews.com cut shares of STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, KeyCorp upped 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.00.

Insider Activity at STERIS

In other STERIS news, CFO Michael J. Tokich sold 23,332 shares of STERIS stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total transaction of $5,763,004.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,603,710. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.