Channing Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Channing Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 728,188 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,031 shares during the period. Channing Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Merit Medical Systems were worth $55,313,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MMSI. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 1.5% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,370 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,130,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. lifted its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 0.9% in the third quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 28,869 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,993,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. Advisor Partners II LLC grew its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 3,704 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 10,150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $701,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Renaissance Group LLC now owns 24,406 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,685,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Barrington Research boosted their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded Merit Medical Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, CL King began coverage on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $88.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $92.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 6,480 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.95, for a total value of $479,196.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 12,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $887,917.65. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Merit Medical Systems news, insider Joseph Wright sold 25,000 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $1,892,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 42,223 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,195,436.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Raul Jr. Parra sold 6,480 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.95, for a total value of $479,196.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 12,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $887,917.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 49,637 shares of company stock valued at $3,751,673 over the last quarter. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MMSI traded up $1.95 on Friday, hitting $78.97. 263,069 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 359,416. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 6.03, a quick ratio of 3.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $62.58 and a 1-year high of $85.62. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $74.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $74.21.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $323.51 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $315.57 million. Merit Medical Systems had a return on equity of 15.02% and a net margin of 7.94%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.64 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.33 EPS for the current year.

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.