LPL Financial LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI – Get Rating) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,598 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 1,013 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Merit Medical Systems were worth $1,944,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MMSI. MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Merit Medical Systems in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 157.4% during the fourth quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 471 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems during the first quarter worth about $43,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 381.8% during the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,137 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 901 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its position in Merit Medical Systems by 27.3% in the third quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 2,380 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $135,000 after purchasing an additional 510 shares during the period. 95.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merit Medical Systems Price Performance

MMSI opened at $80.66 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $77.59 and a 200-day moving average of $72.86. The company has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.50, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.00. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $50.46 and a 1-year high of $85.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 2.58.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 26th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.09. Merit Medical Systems had a net margin of 7.22% and a return on equity of 14.55%. The business had revenue of $297.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $280.47 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.53 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on MMSI shares. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $77.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $74.00 to $81.00 in a report on Thursday, April 27th. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $88.00 to $93.00 in a report on Monday, May 8th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Barrington Research lifted their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $78.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday, April 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.43.

Insider Activity at Merit Medical Systems

In related news, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 1,023 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $71,610.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $468,160. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Merit Medical Systems news, CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos sold 24,977 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.26, for a total transaction of $1,704,930.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 967,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $66,069,946.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 1,023 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $71,610.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $468,160. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 64,068 shares of company stock valued at $4,341,157 in the last quarter. Insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Merit Medical Systems Profile

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Merit Medical Systems, Inc engages in the manufacture and marketing of proprietary disposable medical devices. It operates through the Cardiovascular and Endoscopy segments. The Cardiovascular segment consists of peripheral intervention, cardiac intervention, interventional oncology and spine, and cardiovascular and critical care product groups.