STERIS plc research snapshot
STE AI stock analysis currently reads STERIS as a high-quality infection prevention, sterilization services, and procedural products business with steady healthcare demand, improving fiscal 2026 margins, and strong free cash flow, but not as a clean momentum stock yet. At the July 8, 2026 data cutoff, the latest verified close used here was $215.39 on July 7, 2026, with a market capitalization of about $20.99 billion. The company reported fiscal 2026 revenue from continuing operations of about $5.9 billion, adjusted EPS of $10.17, free cash flow near $983 million, and fiscal 2027 adjusted EPS guidance of $11.10 to $11.30. The main limits are valuation, tariff and inflation pressure, healthcare procedure volume sensitivity, regulatory exposure around ethylene oxide, acquisition execution, leverage, and a technical setup still below the 200-day average. This page is informational research and not investment advice.
Current price
$215.39 close on July 7, 2026
Market cap
$20.99 billion
AI score
68 / 100
Rating
Durable healthcare services compounder, weak chart repair needed
Trend status
Short-term rebound attempt below the 200-day moving average
Data cutoff (updated weekly)
July 8, 2026
Informational use only. This page is not investment advice.
| Dimension | Conclusion | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
| Business quality | STERIS sells infection prevention products, sterilization services, and procedural support that hospitals, medical device makers, and life science customers need for quality and compliance. | High |
| Moat | Moat comes from regulated sterilization capacity, customer qualification, service density, installed equipment, compliance know-how, and switching costs in validated medical workflows. | Medium-high |
| Management | Dan Carestio has led a record fiscal 2026 year and a new $1 billion buyback authorization, with the next scorecard centered on organic growth, tariff handling, capex discipline, and balance-sheet control. | Medium |
| Financial trend | Fiscal 2026 revenue from continuing operations grew 9% to about $5.9 billion, reported net income from continuing operations reached $782.3 million, and free cash flow was about $983 million by company release. | High |
| Valuation | At $215.39 and GAAP EPS of $7.93, financial_rigor.py calculated 27.16x earnings, 2.93x book value, 21.87x free cash flow, and a 4.57% FCF yield. | Medium-high |
| Technical trend | STE is above its 50-day moving average but below its 200-day average, so the chart shows a short-term rebound inside a longer-term downtrend. | Medium |
| Risk level | Risk is moderate: healthcare demand is resilient, but regulatory actions, tariffs, inflation, customer capital cycles, acquisition integration, debt, and multiple compression remain material. | High |
| AI confidence | Data confidence is high for reported results and current market data, while forecast confidence is lower because the share-price path depends on guidance, rates, and investor appetite for quality healthcare assets. | High data confidence |
| Investment certainty | Investment certainty is medium rather than high: the business looks durable, but the stock needs either sustained EPS growth, a better entry price, or clearer technical strength. | Medium |
STE AI stock forecast
The STE AI stock forecast uses scenario ranges, not a precise price prediction. The financial-rigor model used the $215.39 cutoff price, adjusted EPS of $10.17, and three-year EPS growth and terminal PE assumptions. It produced a bullish value near $325, a base value near $249, and a bearish value near $178 before dividends.
$300 to $330
More likely if fiscal 2027 organic revenue grows near the high end of guidance, Healthcare and AST margins hold up despite tariffs, free cash flow funds buybacks without stretching leverage, and the stock reclaims the 200-day average.
$235 to $260
More likely if STERIS delivers mid-single-digit organic growth, adjusted EPS compounds near guidance, the market values the company around 20x forward earnings, and technical resistance near the mid-$230s is repaired gradually.
$170 to $185
More likely if procedure volumes slow, hospital capital orders weaken, ethylene oxide or other compliance costs rise, tariffs pressure margins, or quality healthcare multiples compress.
STE AI technical analysis
STE AI technical analysis uses public market data available at the July 8, 2026 data cutoff. StockAnalysis showed STE closing at $215.39 on July 7, Barchart showed a 50-day moving average near $211.71 and a 200-day moving average near $236.70, and MarketWatch reported that the stock was still about 20.8% below its January 16, 2026 52-week high of $269.44.
| Level | Value | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Current price | $215.39 | StockAnalysis close for July 7, 2026 used for the page snapshot. |
| Near support | $209 to $212 | This area aligns with the 20-day and 50-day moving average zone in Barchart and StockAnalysis snapshots. |
| Deeper support | $195 to $200 | Planning zone near the lower part of the recent 52-week range cited by public quote pages. It should be rechecked against live chart data. |
| Near resistance | $218 to $222 | Recent rebound closes and the July 7 intraday high zone sit near this range. |
| Major resistance | $236 to $240 | Barchart and StockAnalysis placed the 200-day moving average around this area, making it a key trend repair level. |
| 50-day moving average | About $211.71 to $211.86 | Barchart and StockAnalysis snapshots both placed STE slightly above this short-term average at the cutoff. |
| 200-day moving average | About $236.70 to $236.88 | STE remained below this longer-term average, keeping the broader trend mixed to weak. |
| Momentum | Neutral to improving | StockAnalysis listed RSI near 55.39 and Barchart listed 14-day relative strength near 54.03, which is neither overbought nor deeply oversold. |
| Volume | Average volume about 0.82M to 0.84M shares | StockAnalysis and MarketWatch showed recent average volume in this range, so breakouts should be checked against normal liquidity. |
| Volatility | Moderate | StockAnalysis listed beta near 0.92 and Barchart showed 14-day ATR near $5.05, or about 2.36% of price. |
| Invalidation | Close below $209 | A decisive close below the moving-average support zone would weaken the short-term rebound setup and shift attention to the lower support range. |
STE AI trading strategy
The STE AI trading strategy is a rules-based research framework, not personalized advice. Traders should combine live quotes, earnings dates, procedure-volume data, regulatory headlines, margin updates, and predefined invalidation levels before acting.
Wait for STE to hold above the $218 to $222 rebound zone and then reclaim the $236 to $240 200-day moving average area with volume at or above normal levels.
A failed reclaim or a close back below $209 weakens the setup and suggests waiting for a cleaner base.
If STE revisits $195 to $200, compare the move with fiscal 2027 guidance, Healthcare order trends, AST service demand, tariff commentary, and free cash flow.
Do not treat a lower price as automatically cheap if the decline is tied to regulatory cost, weaker hospital capital spending, or lower EPS guidance.
Track organic revenue growth, Healthcare service revenue, AST service volume, Life Sciences capital equipment demand, free cash flow, capex for the Mentor facility, debt, and buyback pace.
Reduce confidence when price appreciation depends more on multiple expansion than on verified revenue, margin, and cash-flow growth.
Investment research summary
STERIS helps healthcare and life science customers keep procedures, instruments, facilities, and medical products sterile and compliant. Customers pay because infection prevention and validated sterilization are mission-critical costs of doing business.
The moat is built on regulated service capacity, customer validation cycles, installed equipment, field service density, compliance expertise, and trusted relationships with hospitals and medical device makers. It weakens if regulation blocks key methods or competitors add capacity faster than demand.
The thesis fails if ethylene oxide regulation disrupts sterilization capacity, tariffs and inflation erode margin, hospital capital budgets slow, acquisitions disappoint, or investors stop paying a premium for steady healthcare services.
Dan Carestio is guiding the company through continued organic growth, a major sterility assurance facility investment, and a new $1 billion buyback authorization. Capital allocation quality depends on balancing growth capex, leverage, dividends, and repurchases.
Long-term demand benefits from aging populations, procedure growth, medical device complexity, outsourcing of sterilization, and tighter quality systems. The trend is favorable, but not immune to reimbursement pressure or hospital budget cycles.
The current price implies a quality compounder multiple rather than a distressed valuation. A margin of safety depends on steady EPS compounding, free cash flow conversion, and technical repair above the 200-day average.
Source-backed data
Every metric below includes a source and last verification date.
| Metric | Value | Source | Last verified |
|---|---|---|---|
| STE price and market capitalization | $215.39 close and $20.99 billion market cap | StockAnalysis statistics page | July 8, 2026 |
| Shares outstanding | 97.46 million shares outstanding | StockAnalysis statistics page | July 8, 2026 |
| Market-cap verification | financial_rigor.py verified $215.39 x 97.46M shares = $20.99B, with 0.01% variance versus reported market cap | Pineify financial_rigor.py calculation using StockAnalysis inputs | July 8, 2026 |
| Fiscal 2026 revenue | Company release reported about $5.9B revenue from continuing operations; StockAnalysis listed $5.936B; financial_rigor.py cross-validation variance was 0.30% | STERIS FY2026 results release | July 8, 2026 |
| Fiscal 2026 net income | $782.3M net income from continuing operations, matching StockAnalysis net income to common in the cross-validation check | STERIS FY2026 results release | July 8, 2026 |
| Fiscal 2026 free cash flow | Company release reported $982.9M; StockAnalysis listed $972.4M; financial_rigor.py cross-validation variance was 0.54% | STERIS FY2026 results release | July 8, 2026 |
| Cash and debt | $439.6M cash and cash equivalents, $2.09B total debt, and about negative $1.65B net cash by StockAnalysis | StockAnalysis statistics page | July 8, 2026 |
| Valuation check | financial_rigor.py calculated 27.16x PE, 2.93x PB, 21.87x P/FCF, 4.57% FCF yield, and 1.14% dividend yield | Pineify financial_rigor.py calculation using StockAnalysis inputs | July 8, 2026 |
| Technical levels | 50-day moving average about $211.71 to $211.86, 200-day moving average about $236.70 to $236.88, RSI near mid-50s | Barchart technical analysis and StockAnalysis statistics | July 8, 2026 |
| Fiscal 2027 outlook | STERIS guided to 7% to 8% reported revenue growth, 6% to 7% constant-currency organic growth, adjusted EPS of $11.10 to $11.30, and about $850M free cash flow | STERIS FY2026 results release | July 8, 2026 |
This STE AI stock analysis is an informational tool based on public data available at the stated cutoff date. It is not investment advice, a recommendation, or a promise of future performance. Forecast scenarios can be wrong, and investors should do independent research or consult a licensed adviser before making financial decisions.
