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

Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) has received an average rating of “Buy” from the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $105.60.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised Merit Medical Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $103.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $114.00 price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $109.00 target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Performance

Shares of MMSI opened at $98.22 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s fifty day moving average is $100.75 and its 200-day moving average is $93.79. The company has a quick ratio of 3.82, a current ratio of 5.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. Merit Medical Systems has a 12 month low of $70.70 and a 12 month high of $108.07.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.06. Merit Medical Systems had a net margin of 9.05% and a return on equity of 15.61%. The firm had revenue of $339.85 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $334.60 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.75 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Merit Medical Systems will post 3.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director F. Ann Millner sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.55, for a total value of $1,269,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,391 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,289,306.05. This represents a 27.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 29,646 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.02, for a total transaction of $2,905,900.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 16,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,603,705.22. This trade represents a 64.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merit Medical Systems

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MMSI. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 10,398 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,028,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,216 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,621 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 28,637 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,830,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,440 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $735,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. 99.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Merit Medical Systems

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.