Analyst Consensus ?
ConsensusBuy12 ratings
Bullish1083.3%
Neutral216.7%
Bearish00.0%
STERIS plc · STE · FY2026 Q4 · Calendar Q2 2026
STERIS Closes FY2026 With Record Revenue and EPS, Unveils $1B Buyback and FY27 Guidance
STERIS delivered a strong fiscal 2026 close with approximately 9% revenue growth to roughly $6 billion, record adjusted EPS of $10.17, and $983 million in free cash flow. Gross margins were modestly pressured by tariffs and inflation, but EBIT margin held at 23.3%. Management struck a confident tone, announcing a dividend increase, a doubled $1 billion share-buyback authorization, and a new $60 million sterility-assurance plant in Ohio. FY27 guidance targets 7-8% revenue growth, ~50 bps of EBIT margin expansion, and EPS of $11.10-$11.30, with tariffs expected to be neutral or slightly positive. The market reacted positively with a 4.6% abnormal move on 2.6x baseline volume.
Reported After market closeNYSEHealthcare
$22.89B market cap
100quality score
Company context
Snapshot as of publicationSTERIS plc provides infection prevention products and services in the United States, Ireland, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Healthcare, Applied Sterilization Technologies, and Life Sciences. The company offers cleaning chemistries and sterility assurance products, automated endoscope reprocessing system and tracking products, endoscopy accessories, instruments, washers, and sterilizers and other pieces of capital equipment, as well as equipment used directly in the procedure rooms, including surgical tables, lights, equipment management services, and connectivity solutions; and various preventive maintenance programs, repair services, custom process improvement consulting, and outsourced instrument sterile processing, as well as instrument, devices, and endoscope repair and maintenance services.…
Earnings scorecard
Reported versus consensus
Reported EPS
$2.83
Consensus $3
EPS surprise
-0.7%
Reported versus consensus
Reported revenue
$1.59B
Consensus $1.59B
Revenue surprise
-0.4%
Reported versus consensus
Earnings History
Estimate
Beat
Miss
Match
Analyst 52W Price Targets
$231.21Current
$245Low
$264.75Average
$275High
Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted current price from FN2's market snapshot as of Jul 31, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.
Firm-level rating actions
FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.
| Firm | Rating | Prior rating | Action | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keybanc | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | May 13, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Aug 8, 2025 |
| JMP Securities | Market Outperform | Market Outperform | Maintain | May 16, 2025 |
| Stephens & Co. | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | May 15, 2025 |
| Needham | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Apr 7, 2025 |
| Piper Sandler | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Feb 3, 2025 |
| Baird | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Aug 11, 2021 |
| Sidoti & Co. | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Nov 25, 2020 |
| Raymond James | Outperform | Strong Buy | Downgrade | Nov 25, 2020 |
| Griffin Securities | Hold | Buy | Downgrade | Nov 25, 2020 |
| Bank of America | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Nov 25, 2020 |
| B of A Securities | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Mar 15, 2013 |
Named analyst price targets
Upside is calculated against the persisted current price $231.21. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.
| Firm | Analyst | 52W target | Price when posted | Upside | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UBS | Patrick Wood | $275 | $218.4 | +18.9% | Jul 28, 2026 |
| Piper Sandler | Jason Bednar | $270 | $216.18 | +16.8% | May 21, 2026 |
| KeyBanc | Brett Fishbin | $269 | $210.85 | +16.3% | May 13, 2026 |
| Piper Sandler | Jason Bednar | $260 | $221.15 | +12.5% | Oct 24, 2024 |
| KeyBanc | Brett Fishbin | $265 | $241.1 | +14.6% | Sep 3, 2024 |
| Piper Sandler | Jason Bednar | $225 | $225.94 | -2.7% | May 10, 2024 |
| Wolfe Research | Mike Polark | $245 | $216.65 | +6.0% | Apr 4, 2024 |
Track every rating change on STE the moment it posts. Free to start.
Start freeMarket reaction
event-close to next-session close
Stock move
+4.5%
Event window
SPY move
-0.2%
Same window
Abnormal move
+4.6%
Stock minus SPY
Volume
2.6×
Versus trailing sessions
Subsequent drift
-1.3%
Up to 20 sessions
STESPY benchmark
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What changed
Compared with Q3, where management was cautious on tariff exposure and merely maintained guidance, the Q4 call marked a clear tone shift to confidence. Three notable changes: (1) tariffs, previously a $10 million FY2026 headwind, are now expected to be neutral or slightly positive in FY27; (2) the board approved a $1 billion buyback authorization, double the prior program, with $225 million already repurchased; (3) STERIS announced a new $60 million sterility-assurance manufacturing plant in Mentor, Ohio, consolidating existing facilities. Two tuck-in acquisitions -- a GI product line and vertical integration of MEDglas wall supplier -- are set to contribute approximately $45 million in FY27 revenue.
Guidance delta
FY2026 guidance of 8-9% revenue growth and EPS of $10.00-$10.30 was maintained and ultimately delivered (EPS came in at $10.17). For FY27, management introduced targets of 7-8% revenue growth, ~50 bps EBIT margin expansion, and EPS of $11.10-$11.30. Capex outlook moved from stable to increasing, reflecting the new Ohio plant. The dividend was raised and a $200-300 million annual buyback range was established.
Key takeaways
- Fiscal 2026 delivered record revenue (~$6B, +9% YoY), record adjusted EPS ($10.17), and $983M in free cash flow with a low debt leverage ratio.
- FY27 guidance targets 7-8% revenue growth, ~50 bps EBIT margin expansion, and EPS of $11.10-$11.30.
- Tariffs are expected to be neutral or slightly positive in FY27, reversing from a $10M headwind in FY2026.
- The board approved a new $1B share-buyback authorization, double the prior program; $225M already repurchased.
- Two tuck-in acquisitions (GI product line, MEDglas vertical integration) to add ~$45M in FY27 revenue.
Management priorities
- Deliver FY27 revenue growth of 7-8% and expand EBIT margin by ~50 bps
- Build and launch a new $60M sterility-assurance manufacturing plant in Mentor, Ohio
- Execute two tuck-in acquisitions contributing ~$45M in FY27 revenue
- Maintain dividend growth and repurchase $200-300M of shares annually
- Kick off a multiyear AI-driven service workflow improvement project
Related earnings events
HealthcareHCA · FY2026 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2026HCA Q2 2026: Payer-Mix Shift Hits EBITDA, Florida Medicaid Boosts, $7B Capex UnveiledWST · FY2026 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2026West Pharmaceutical Q2 2026: EPS and Revenue Beat, Guidance Raised AgainDGX · FY2026 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2026Quest Diagnostics Beats on Volume and AI Automation, Raises Full-Year Guidance
Sources
- Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-05-12T16:20:02.896756+00:00
- FN2 earnings calendar · 2026-07-26T00:37:12.209961+00:00
- Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-07-31T01:10:59.196110+00:00
- Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-07-31T01:10:59.193018+00:00
Methodology
Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.
Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.
Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.
By FN2 Research · Updated . For educational purposes only; not investment advice.