Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Sells 150,000 Shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. $MMSI

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. drastically reduced its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 60%, now holding 100,000 shares valued at approximately $10.57 million.
• Several analysts maintain a positive outlook on Merit Medical, with an average target price of $107 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".
• Recent insider trading includes CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos selling 400 shares, reducing his ownership, while CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold over 15,000 shares, indicating notable insider activity.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. decreased its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI - Free Report) by 60.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 100,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 150,000 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.17% of Merit Medical Systems worth $10,571,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Maverick Capital Ltd. acquired a new position in Merit Medical Systems during the first quarter worth about $134,517,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 2.4% in the first quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 4,616 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $488,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Driehaus Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 172.9% in the first quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 227,814 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $24,082,000 after buying an additional 144,350 shares during the period. CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 35.8% in the first quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 20,953 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,215,000 after buying an additional 5,520 shares during the period. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merit Medical Systems in the first quarter valued at approximately $162,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.66% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MMSI. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Merit Medical Systems from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Merit Medical Systems from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $112.00 price objective on Merit Medical Systems and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $108.00 price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $103.00 target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $107.00.

Insider Activity

In other Merit Medical Systems news, Director Lynne N. Ward sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.56, for a total transaction of $265,680.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,809 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,134,365.04. This represents a 18.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Merit Medical Systems Trading Down 5.2%

MMSI stock traded down $4.68 during trading on Friday, hitting $85.53. The company had a trading volume of 700,190 shares, compared to its average volume of 480,356. The business has a 50-day moving average of $87.85 and a 200-day moving average of $93.37. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a one year low of $81.04 and a one year high of $111.45. The stock has a market cap of $5.07 billion, a PE ratio of 43.42, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a current ratio of 4.09, a quick ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

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

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.