Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) Stock Position Reduced by Emerald Advisers LLC

Emerald Advisers LLC decreased its position in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 359,153 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 13,139 shares during the quarter. Merit Medical Systems accounts for approximately 1.3% of Emerald Advisers LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Emerald Advisers LLC’s holdings in Merit Medical Systems were worth $30,869,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MMSI. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 3.5% in the second quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,250,368 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $193,419,000 after purchasing an additional 75,885 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,306,702 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $99,258,000 after buying an additional 41,065 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 17.6% during the 1st quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 880,327 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $66,685,000 after buying an additional 131,977 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 2.7% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 838,843 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $63,543,000 after acquiring an additional 22,077 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 652,626 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $49,573,000 after acquiring an additional 10,659 shares during the last quarter. 99.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merit Medical Systems Trading Down 0.9 %

Merit Medical Systems stock opened at $96.58 on Friday. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 12-month low of $62.58 and a 12-month high of $98.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.61 billion, a PE ratio of 55.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $89.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 6.24 and a quick ratio of 4.64.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $338.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $334.94 million. Merit Medical Systems had a return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 9.02%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director F. Ann Millner sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $1,062,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,391 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,753,235. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Merit Medical Systems news, Director F. Ann Millner sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total value of $1,062,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 32,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,753,235. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Neil Peterson sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.85, for a total value of $613,875.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 14,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,212,935.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on MMSI. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird started coverage on Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $96.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded Merit Medical Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $102.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Merit Medical Systems to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merit Medical Systems presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $98.20.

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.