Vanguard Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI - Free Report) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,648,659 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 63,314 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.41% of Merit Medical Systems worth $643,058,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 305.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 112,727 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $11,142,000 after purchasing an additional 84,923 shares in the last quarter. EULAV Asset Management lifted its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 400.0% in the 4th quarter. EULAV Asset Management now owns 115,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $11,123,000 after buying an additional 92,000 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 85.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 575,946 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $56,921,000 after buying an additional 265,648 shares during the period. AMI Asset Management Corp grew its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 28.7% during the 4th quarter. AMI Asset Management Corp now owns 33,041 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $3,196,000 after buying an additional 7,367 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Merit Medical Systems during the fourth quarter valued at $800,000. 99.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Merit Medical Systems Stock Down 11.0 %

Shares of MMSI stock traded down $11.46 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $92.50. 2,000,794 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 461,792. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 1 year low of $70.70 and a 1 year high of $111.45. The company has a current ratio of 5.36, a quick ratio of 3.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a market cap of $5.44 billion, a PE ratio of 45.34, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.91. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $104.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $101.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Brian G. Lloyd sold 30,000 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.90, for a total transaction of $3,087,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,007,440.50. The trade was a 43.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen C. Evans sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.31, for a total value of $526,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $490,428.67. The trade was a 51.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 109,132 shares of company stock worth $11,139,521 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on MMSI. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $116.00 price objective (up previously from $114.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Barrington Research dropped their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $115.00 to $111.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $128.00 to $127.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merit Medical Systems has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.70.

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.