NFJ Investment Group LLC Sells 6,491 Shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

NFJ Investment Group LLC cut its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI - Free Report) by 5.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 103,719 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 6,491 shares during the quarter. NFJ Investment Group LLC owned approximately 0.18% of Merit Medical Systems worth $10,032,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 28,200 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,728,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 1.0% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 10,398 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,028,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 5,987 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $579,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Merit Medical Systems news, insider Brian G. Lloyd sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.50, for a total transaction of $2,487,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,879,803.50. This represents a 39.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 12,451 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.81, for a total transaction of $1,230,283.31. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,201 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,391,300.81. The trade was a 33.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 109,132 shares of company stock worth $11,139,521. Insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on MMSI. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $111.00 price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Friday, March 28th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $120.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James increased their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $128.00 to $127.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $116.00 target price (up from $114.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $114.33.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Performance

Shares of Merit Medical Systems stock traded down $2.36 during trading on Monday, reaching $88.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 119,886 shares, compared to its average volume of 484,310. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 52 week low of $71.57 and a 52 week high of $111.45. The business's 50-day moving average price is $100.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $100.68. The firm has a market cap of $5.23 billion, a PE ratio of 43.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 3.82, a current ratio of 5.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

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.