On OCT. 5, Barron's published an upbeat piece by Christopher C. Williams on Steris (STE), a leader in infection prevention and equipment sterilization whose roots go back to 1894. The article said that even if the H1N1 virus and other flu threats subside, Steris could still clean up. Indeed, the shares, at 29 and change a month ago and up 54% since early March, were recently quoted at 34. And last Tuesday, the Mentor, Ohio, company, which in May boosted its quarterly common dividend to 11 cents a share from eight cents, declared an extra $2 payout. At the same time, Steris posted fiscal second-quarter (ended Sept. 30) earnings per share of 54 cents, a dime better than Wall Street had expected, on revenue of $314 million, $17 million higher than the pros' consensus guess. "The decision...to return cash to our shareholders through a special dividend is a reflection of our current cash position, free-cash-flow generation and the confidence we have in the company's future," said Chief Executive Walter M. Rosebrough. "Steris's strong balance sheet allows us to make this distribution without hindering our ability to pursue growth alternatives," he added. The respective payment, record and ex-dates for the regular and bonus dividends are Dec. 22, Nov. 24 and Nov. 20. Dividends were initiated in 2005 and have been enriched annually. Yield: 1.30%.

its Board of Directors has authorized a 38% increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.11 per common share.

33%

Small-Cap Stocks, Big-Time Dividends
Michael Petroff, portfolio manager for the five-star Heartland Value Plus Fund, names his best mix of small-cap dividend-paying stocks, including Werner Enterprises and Steris Corp.

Click here to watch the video.

Small-Cap Stocks With Big-Time Dividends
Michael Petroff, portfolio manager for the five-star Heartland Value Plus Fund, names his best mix of small-cap dividend-paying stocks, including Werner Enterprises and Steris Corp.

Click here to watch the video.

Breeden Capital Management increased its holdings to about 4.88 million shares (7.87%), from the 4.26 million (6.72%) reported on Feb. 8.

Breeden Capital Management, the hedge fund run by Richard Breeden, former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, reported ownership of 4,259,973 shares (6.72%), acquired from Jan. 31 to Feb. 5 at an average price of $23.29 a share.

Steris recently announced a $300 million dollar buyback which replaces its prior plan.

This amounts to 15% of outstanding shares. The board also lifted its regular quarterly dividend by 20 percent to 6 cents per share.

Steris Corporation engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of infection prevention, contamination control, microbial reduction, and surgical and critical care support products and services.

The stock trades for 8.5x cash flow.

I usually don't but them this high but with all the flus and things....well you do the math

unique industry leadership position and turnaround story