Yorktown Management & Research Co Inc Invests $312,000 in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Yorktown Management & Research Co Inc bought a new position in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,950 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $312,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,347 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,869 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,632,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 5,987 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $579,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of 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 valued at $162,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 5,809 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $562,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the period. 99.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on MMSI shares. Raymond James Financial reduced their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $116.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $111.00 to $110.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and set a $108.00 price objective (up from $106.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barrington Research dropped their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $111.00 to $103.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated 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 target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $109.11.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of MMSI traded down $0.61 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $92.65. 525,236 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 535,945. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 3.26 and a current ratio of 4.87. The company has a market cap of $5.48 billion, a PE ratio of 45.42, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.66. The firm's 50 day moving average is $94.54 and its 200-day moving average is $99.00. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 52 week low of $82.04 and a 52 week high of $111.45.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.11. Merit Medical Systems had a return on equity of 15.52% and a net margin of 8.81%. The firm had revenue of $355.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $352.57 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.77 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Merit Medical Systems

In other Merit Medical Systems news, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 15,181 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.75, for a total value of $1,423,218.75. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 24,201 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,268,843.75. This trade represents a 38.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.54, for a total value of $1,930,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,066,028 shares in the company, valued at $102,914,343.12. This trade represents a 1.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 85,596 shares of company stock worth $8,171,433. 3.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.