Russell Investments Group Ltd. Acquires 13,825 Shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. $MMSI

Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 52.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 40,008 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,825 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Merit Medical Systems were worth $4,229,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. US Bancorp DE grew its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 3.8% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,936 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $416,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Westover Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Westover Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,728 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $711,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,065 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $324,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 15.9% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,529 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $162,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 4,689 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $496,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. 99.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $111.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $108.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Friday, July 18th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merit Medical Systems has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $107.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merit Medical Systems

In other news, Director Michael R. Mcdonnell sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.51, for a total transaction of $165,392.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $604,391.45. This trade represents a 21.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Lynne N. Ward sold 2,433 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.89, for a total transaction of $206,537.37. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,809 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,087,356.01. This trade represents a 15.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 66,779 shares of company stock valued at $6,327,983. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Performance

Merit Medical Systems stock opened at $89.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 4.09 and a quick ratio of 2.66. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $81.04 and a 1-year high of $111.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s 50-day moving average is $88.73 and its 200 day moving average is $95.13.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $382.46 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $372.47 million. Merit Medical Systems had a net margin of 8.31% and a return on equity of 15.07%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.92 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.37 EPS for the current year.

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.