Vanguard Group Inc. Buys 63,314 Shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,648,659 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 63,314 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 11.41% of Merit Medical Systems worth $643,058,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Merit Medical Systems in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Merit Medical Systems in the 4th quarter valued at $52,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 237.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,388 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring an additional 977 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,494 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $144,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its position in Merit Medical Systems by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,732 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. 99.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Performance

Shares of Merit Medical Systems stock opened at $103.94 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $6.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.95, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 5.36, a quick ratio of 3.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $104.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $101.06. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $70.70 and a 1-year high of $111.45.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on MMSI shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $128.00 to $127.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $122.00 to $116.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Barrington Research cut their price target 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. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $116.00 price objective (up from $114.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merit Medical Systems news, insider Brian G. Lloyd sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.90, for a total transaction of $3,087,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,007,440.50. This represents a 43.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 12,451 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.81, for a total transaction of $1,230,283.31. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 24,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,391,300.81. This represents a 33.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 109,132 shares of company stock valued at $11,139,521 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

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.