Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) Shares Sold by William Blair Investment Management LLC

William Blair Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 52.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 687,031 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 751,501 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned about 1.18% of Merit Medical Systems worth $66,450,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems during the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $120,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 237.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,388 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $134,000 after purchasing an additional 977 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,494 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $144,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merit Medical Systems

In other news, CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos sold 31,320 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.86, for a total transaction of $3,252,895.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,086,028 shares in the company, valued at $112,794,868.08. The trade was a 2.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian G. Lloyd sold 25,000 shares of Merit Medical Systems 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 transaction, the insider now owns 38,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,879,803.50. This represents a 39.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 109,132 shares of company stock worth $11,139,521. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Merit Medical Systems Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of MMSI stock opened at $100.69 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $103.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 3.82 and a current ratio of 5.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.36, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.91. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $70.70 and a fifty-two week high of $111.45.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barrington Research dropped their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $115.00 to $111.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target 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. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $122.00 to $116.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $116.00 price target (up previously from $114.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Merit Medical Systems has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $110.78.

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.