Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) Director Stephen C. Evans Sells 5,000 Shares

Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) Director Stephen C. Evans sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.31, for a total transaction of $526,550.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,657 shares in the company, valued at $490,428.67. This trade represents a 51.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Merit Medical Systems Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MMSI traded down $1.14 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $101.89. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,053,340 shares, compared to its average volume of 575,618. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $103.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $100.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 3.82 and a current ratio of 5.36. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $70.70 and a 1-year high of $111.45.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Merit Medical Systems

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 28,200 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,728,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,347 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 1.0% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 10,398 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,028,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,869 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,632,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 0.6% during the third 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 during the last quarter. 99.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barrington Research decreased their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $115.00 to $111.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 31st. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $122.00 to $116.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $116.00 price objective (up from $114.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.78.

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.