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Why Is Steris (STE) Up 10% Since Last Earnings Report?

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It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Steris (STE - Free Report) . Shares have added about 10% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Steris due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.

STERIS’ Earnings & Revenues Surpass Estimates in Q2

STERIS reported second-quarter fiscal 2021 adjusted earnings per share of $1.48, up 12.1% year over year. The metric beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 19.4%.

The adjustment excludes the impact of certain non-recurring charges like COVID-19-led incremental costs, amortization of acquired intangible assets, acquisition and integration related charges and amortization of property "step up" to fair value.

The company’s GAAP earnings per share was $1.23, up 10.8% year over year.

Revenues in Detail

Revenues of $756.1 million improved 2.6% year over year in the quarter. Further, the metric exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 7.2%. The year-over-year uptick was led by robust sales in two of the company’s three reporting segments.

Organic revenues at CER rose 2% year over year in fiscal second quarter.

Quarter in Detail

The company operates through three segments — Healthcare, Applied Sterilization Technologies and Life Sciences.

Revenues at Healthcare fell 2.9% year over year to $470.9 million (down 3% on a CER organic basis). In the quarter under review, service revenues were flat and consumable revenues increased 6%. Meanwhile, capital equipment revenues fell 14%.

Revenues at Applied Sterilization Technologies improved 10.9% to $169.5 million (up 9% at CER organic basis). CER organic revenues reflected increased demand from medical device customers on a rebound in procedure volumes during the quarter.

Revenues at the Life Sciences segment rose 17.2% to $115.7 million (up 16% at CER organic basis) on 31% growth in consumable revenues, 3% rise in service revenues and 10% improvement in capital equipment revenues.

Margins

Gross profit in the reported quarter was $330 million, up 3.3% from the prior-year quarter’s adjusted gross profit (excluding costs and benefits of revenues for restructuring). Gross margin expanded 28 basis points (bps) year over year to 43.6% in the reported quarter.

STERIS witnessed a 1.8% year-over-year contraction in selling, general and administrative expenses to $172.7 million. Research and development expenses also dipped 0.7% to $16.1 million. Adjusted operating expenses of $188.9 million fell 1.7% year over year.

Adjusted operating profit totaled $141.2 million, reflecting a 10.8% rise from the prior-year quarter. Further, adjusted operating margin in fiscal second quarter expanded 139 bps to 18.7%.

Financial Details

STERIS exited fiscal second quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $312 million compared with $255.6 million at the end of fiscal first quarter.

Cumulative net cash flow from operating activities at the end of fiscal second quarter was $296 million compared with $260 million a year ago.

The company’s free cash flow at the end of second-quarter fiscal 2021 was $185.6 million compared with $162 million in the year-ago period. Capital expenditure of the company at the end of the reported quarter was $110.7 million, up from $98.2 million in the year-ago period.

The company approved a quarterly interim dividend of 40 cents per share to shareholders.

Guidance

STERIS, due to uncertainties tied to the duration and impact of the pandemic on its operations, is not issuing any financial outlook for fiscal 2021 at the moment.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

In the past month, investors have witnessed an upward trend in estimates review. The consensus estimate has shifted 11.67% due to these changes.

VGM Scores

At this time, Steris has an average Growth Score of C, however its Momentum Score is doing a lot better with an A. However, the stock was allocated a grade of D on the value side, putting it in the bottom 40% for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. It comes with little surprise Steris has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). We expect an above average return from the stock in the next few months.


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