Merit Financial Group LLC Purchases New Position in Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE:MTD)

Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE:MTD - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 433 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $511,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MTD. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Mettler-Toledo International during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Mettler-Toledo International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Mettler-Toledo International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Menard Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Mettler-Toledo International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Mettler-Toledo International by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 64 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $78,000 after acquiring an additional 8 shares in the last quarter. 95.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mettler-Toledo International Trading Down 0.2%

MTD stock traded down $2.35 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $1,190.63. 29,316 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 151,447. Mettler-Toledo International Inc. has a 52-week low of $946.69 and a 52-week high of $1,546.93. The stock has a market cap of $24.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.38, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.38. The stock's 50-day moving average is $1,098.71 and its 200 day moving average is $1,205.01.

Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $8.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.90 by $0.29. Mettler-Toledo International had a negative return on equity of 591.54% and a net margin of 22.29%. The firm had revenue of $883.74 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $876.61 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $8.89 EPS. Mettler-Toledo International's revenue was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Mettler-Toledo International Inc. will post 42.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MTD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded shares of Mettler-Toledo International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $1,530.00 to $1,350.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen cut Mettler-Toledo International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Citigroup raised Mettler-Toledo International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $1,400.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Mettler-Toledo International from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $1,200.00 to $1,110.00 in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Mettler-Toledo International from $1,125.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mettler-Toledo International has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,302.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael A. Kelly sold 1,062 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,159.93, for a total transaction of $1,231,845.66. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $139,191.60. This trade represents a 89.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.94% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Mettler-Toledo International

Mettler-Toledo International Inc manufactures and supplies precision instruments and services in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It operates through five segments: U.S. Operations, Swiss Operations, Western European Operations, Chinese Operations, and Other. The company's laboratory instruments include laboratory balances, liquid pipetting solutions, automated laboratory reactors, real-time analytics, titrators, pH meters, process analytics sensors and analyzer technologies, physical value analyzers, density and refractometry, thermal analysis systems, and other analytical instruments; and LabX, a laboratory software platform to manage and analyze data generated from its instruments.