Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) Shares Acquired by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 332.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,682 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 3,600 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Merit Medical Systems were worth $452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merit Medical Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 139.1% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 655 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the last quarter. Group One Trading LLC purchased a new position in Merit Medical Systems during the 4th quarter worth approximately $77,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 237.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,388 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 977 shares during the period. 99.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merit Medical Systems Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of Merit Medical Systems stock opened at $96.49 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $5.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.70. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 52-week low of $80.02 and a 52-week high of $111.45. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $96.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $100.56. 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 (NASDAQ:MMSI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $355.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $352.57 million. Merit Medical Systems had a return on equity of 15.61% and a net margin of 9.05%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos sold 31,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.86, for a total transaction of $3,252,895.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,086,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $112,794,868.08. The trade was a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Brian G. Lloyd sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.50, for a total value of $2,487,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,993 shares in the company, valued at $3,879,803.50. This trade represents a 39.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 130,382 shares of company stock valued at $13,189,508 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MMSI shares. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Merit Medical Systems from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Friday, March 28th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $120.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $116.00 to $112.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merit Medical Systems presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.33.

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.