Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from nine research firms, with eight analysts recommending to buy the stock and one recommending to hold it.
• The average 1-year price target set by analysts for Merit Medical Systems is $109.11, indicating potential upside from its current trading price of $84.46.
• Institutional investors own 99.66% of Merit Medical Systems, highlighting strong institutional confidence and presence in the company.

Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the nine research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $107.00.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $108.00 target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $112.00 target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $103.00 target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Thursday. Raymond James Financial cut their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $108.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday.

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 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 owned 6,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $604,391.45. This trade represents a 21.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 15,181 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.75, for a total transaction of $1,423,218.75. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 24,201 shares in the company, valued at $2,268,843.75. This represents a 38.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 85,596 shares of company stock worth $8,171,433 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 244,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $22,824,000 after buying an additional 12,256 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 19,803 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,851,000 after buying an additional 1,114 shares during the last quarter. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merit Medical Systems in the 2nd quarter valued at $435,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 22.9% in the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 739,600 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $69,138,000 after buying an additional 137,956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Angeles Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 13.8% in the 2nd quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,351 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $220,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. 99.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merit Medical Systems Trading Up 0.5%

Merit Medical Systems stock traded up $0.45 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $85.31. The stock had a trading volume of 157,479 shares, compared to its average volume of 669,232. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $91.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $97.29. Merit Medical Systems has a twelve month low of $81.04 and a twelve month high of $111.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 4.87 and a quick ratio of 3.26. The firm has a market cap of $5.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.22, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.65.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI - Get Free Report) last released its 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. Merit Medical Systems had a net margin of 8.31% and a return on equity of 15.37%. The company had revenue of $382.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $372.47 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.92 EPS. The company's revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Merit Medical Systems will post 3.37 EPS for the current fiscal 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.