Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $109.11.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MMSI. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $116.00 to $108.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $112.00 price objective on Merit Medical Systems and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $111.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Friday, July 18th.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Performance

NASDAQ MMSI opened at $84.46 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 3.26, a current ratio of 4.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company’s 50 day moving average is $92.39 and its 200-day moving average is $97.57. Merit Medical Systems has a 12-month low of $82.62 and a 12-month high of $111.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 15,181 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.75, for a total value of $1,423,218.75. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 24,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,268,843.75. This trade represents a 38.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos sold 20,000 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.54, for a total transaction of $1,930,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,066,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,914,343.12. The trade was a 1.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 85,596 shares of company stock worth $8,171,433. 3.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merit Medical Systems

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Merit Medical Systems by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,648,659 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $643,058,000 after acquiring an additional 63,314 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 31.6% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,076,439 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $200,833,000 after purchasing an additional 499,193 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 16.4% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,787,289 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $188,934,000 after buying an additional 251,821 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 8.2% during the 1st quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,766,711 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $186,759,000 after buying an additional 133,465 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. bought a new stake in Merit Medical Systems in the 1st quarter worth approximately $134,517,000. Institutional investors own 99.66% of the company’s stock.

Merit Medical Systems Company Profile

Merit Medical Systems, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and markets single-use medical products for interventional, diagnostic, and therapeutic procedures in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Cardiovascular and Endoscopy. The company provides micropuncture kits, angiographic needles, sheaths, guide wires, and safety products; peripheral intervention, including angiography, drainage, delivery systems, and embolotherapy products; spine products, such as vertebral augmentation, radiofrequency ablation, and bone biopsy systems; oncology products; and cardiac intervention products, such as access, angiography, electrophysiology and cardiac rhythm management, fluid management, hemodynamic monitoring, hemostasis, and intervention to treat various heart conditions.