Nomura Holdings Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Nomura Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 321,728 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,405 shares during the period. Nomura Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Merit Medical Systems were worth $31,118,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MMSI. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 305.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 112,727 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $11,142,000 after buying an additional 84,923 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 79.7% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 166,927 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $16,145,000 after purchasing an additional 74,019 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 20.6% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 4,812 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $465,000 after purchasing an additional 821 shares during the last quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merit Medical Systems in the 4th quarter valued at $800,000. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merit Medical Systems in the 4th quarter valued at $200,000. 99.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMSI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $127.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $111.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $116.00 to $112.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Merit Medical Systems in a report on Friday, March 28th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barrington Research dropped their price objective 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. Two 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $107.78.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Down 1.1%

MMSI opened at $97.61 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 5.36 and a quick ratio of 3.82. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $96.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $100.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.70. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 12 month low of $80.02 and a 12 month high of $111.45.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.11. Merit Medical Systems had a return on equity of 15.61% and a net margin of 9.05%. The firm had revenue of $355.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $352.57 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.77 EPS. Merit Medical Systems’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Merit Medical Systems

In other news, insider Brian G. Lloyd sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.50, for a total value of $2,487,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,879,803.50. The trade was a 39.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos sold 31,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.86, for a total value of $3,252,895.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,086,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $112,794,868.08. This trade represents a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 109,132 shares of company stock valued at $11,139,521 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

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.