STERIS plc Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.52 (NYSE:STE)

STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, May 2nd, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 12th will be given a dividend of 0.52 per share by the medical equipment provider on Wednesday, June 26th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 12th.

STERIS has increased its dividend by an average of 8.7% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 19 years. STERIS has a payout ratio of 20.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect STERIS to earn $9.52 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.08 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 21.8%.

STERIS Stock Performance

Shares of STE traded up $1.20 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $206.24. The stock had a trading volume of 384,283 shares, compared to its average volume of 456,610. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market cap of $20.38 billion, a PE ratio of 35.91 and a beta of 0.81. STERIS has a fifty-two week low of $185.22 and a fifty-two week high of $254.00. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $219.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $216.36.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.35 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 13.67%. STERIS’s revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.02 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that STERIS will post 8.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on STE. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a report on Friday, April 12th. TheStreet upgraded shares of STERIS from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on STERIS in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $253.00 price objective for the company. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $239.60.

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.