Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Sells 705 Shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. $MMSI

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 2.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,226 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 705 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merit Medical Systems were worth $2,452,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MMSI. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 31.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,959 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $207,000 after buying an additional 465 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 18.8% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,691 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 426 shares during the period. Amundi lifted its position in Merit Medical Systems by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 132,780 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $13,804,000 after acquiring an additional 2,847 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 15.3% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 260,084 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $27,493,000 after purchasing an additional 34,448 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 119.8% during the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 367 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 99.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Merit Medical Systems Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of Merit Medical Systems stock opened at $83.31 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.58. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $79.10 and a 12-month high of $111.45. The business’s 50 day moving average is $85.98 and its 200-day moving average is $91.29.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.01 earnings per share 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 15.07%. The business had revenue of $382.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $372.47 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merit Medical Systems

In other news, Director Lynne N. Ward sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.56, for a total value of $265,680.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 12,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,134,365.04. This represents a 18.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 3.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.