Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Has $4.30 Million Stake in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 94.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,629 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 27,523 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC owned about 0.10% of Merit Medical Systems worth $4,302,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Cim Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 3.5% in the first quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,381 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 13.2% during the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,300 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 53.8% during the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,773 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $122,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 6,993 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $517,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the period. 99.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merit Medical Systems Price Performance

Merit Medical Systems stock opened at $72.03 on Friday. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 52 week low of $62.58 and a 52 week high of $85.62. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $75.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.50. The company has a quick ratio of 3.95, a current ratio of 5.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.89.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.04. Merit Medical Systems had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 14.63%. The firm had revenue of $324.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $320.66 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Merit Medical Systems

In other Merit Medical Systems news, insider Joseph Wright sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total value of $1,892,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,223 shares in the company, valued at $3,195,436.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Merit Medical Systems news, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 6,480 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.95, for a total transaction of $479,196.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 12,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $887,917.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph Wright sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $1,892,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,223 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,195,436.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 69,637 shares of company stock worth $5,351,673. Insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. CL King assumed coverage on Merit Medical Systems in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $88.00 target price for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com downgraded Merit Medical Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $92.50.

Merit Medical Systems 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.