Axecap Investments LLC Buys New Stake in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Axecap Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 26,304 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $2,781,000. Merit Medical Systems makes up 2.4% of Axecap Investments LLC's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 227,209 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $24,018,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Merit Medical Systems during the 1st quarter valued at about $294,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 31.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,959 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $207,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $382,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the period. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in Merit Medical Systems by 18.8% during the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 5,719 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $605,000 after purchasing an additional 907 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.66% of the company's stock.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MMSI traded down $0.60 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $92.97. 619,354 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 532,431. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.57, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.66. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 52-week low of $80.02 and a 52-week high of $111.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 5.36 and a quick ratio of 3.82. The company's 50 day moving average price is $94.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $99.57.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.86 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $352.57 million. Merit Medical Systems had a net margin of 9.05% and a return on equity of 15.61%. Merit Medical Systems's revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.77 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merit Medical Systems news, CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos sold 400 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.61, for a total transaction of $38,244.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,045,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $99,972,493.08. The trade was a 0.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael R. Mcdonnell sold 1,750 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.30, for a total transaction of $165,025.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 8,145 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $768,073.50. The trade was a 17.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 70,415 shares of company stock valued at $6,748,214. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MMSI. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $112.00 price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Friday, March 28th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $120.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $116.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $110.00 price objective (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $108.00 price objective (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $109.11.

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.