Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) Given Outperform Rating at Barrington Research

Key Points

• Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating for Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) with a target price of $103.00, indicating a potential upside of 23.63% from its previous close.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.01 per share, surpassing analysts' consensus estimate of $0.85, with revenue increasing by 13.2% year-over-year.
• Institutional investors own a significant majority of Merit Medical's stock, with recent increases in holdings by several hedge funds, reflecting strong institutional confidence in the company's prospects.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "outperform" rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at Barrington Research in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $103.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier's stock. Barrington Research's price objective suggests a potential upside of 23.63% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial lowered their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $108.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $108.00 price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $107.50.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of MMSI opened at $83.31 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.29, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.58. Merit Medical Systems has a 52 week low of $79.10 and a 52 week high of $111.45. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $85.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.29. The company has a quick ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

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

Insider Transactions at Merit Medical Systems

In other news, Director Lynne N. Ward sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.56, for a total transaction of $265,680.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 12,809 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,134,365.04. This represents a 18.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Merit Medical Systems

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MMSI. Maseco LLP acquired a new position in shares of Merit Medical Systems during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merit Medical Systems during the first quarter worth $31,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 1,435.0% during the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 307 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 55.6% in the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 375 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 119.8% in the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 367 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.66% of the company's stock.

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.

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