Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) Shares Bought by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 108.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,400 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 20,506 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned approximately 0.07% of Merit Medical Systems worth $3,811,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pathstone Holdings LLC raised its position in Merit Medical Systems by 20.1% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 34,950 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,454,000 after purchasing an additional 5,844 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 216.8% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 10,064 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $995,000 after purchasing an additional 6,887 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 67.6% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 14,024 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,386,000 after buying an additional 5,654 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Merit Medical Systems by 8.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 727,340 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $71,883,000 after buying an additional 54,122 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 71.0% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 74,656 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $7,378,000 after buying an additional 30,988 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.66% of the company’s stock.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Performance

Shares of MMSI stock opened at $104.68 on Tuesday. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 12 month low of $70.70 and a 12 month 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 company has a market cap of $6.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.31, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.91. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $104.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $100.87.

Insider Transactions at Merit Medical Systems

In related news, insider Brian G. Lloyd sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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. This represents a 39.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos sold 31,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,086,028 shares in the company, valued at approximately $112,794,868.08. The trade was a 2.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 109,132 shares of company stock valued at $11,139,521. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMSI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James upped their price objective 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. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $122.00 to $116.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective 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. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $116.00 target price (up from $114.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merit Medical Systems has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.78.

About Merit Medical Systems

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.