Zions Bancorporation N.A. Purchases 7,358 Shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 19.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 44,428 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,358 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A.’s holdings in Merit Medical Systems were worth $4,297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merit Medical Systems during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $396,000. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 69,671 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,739,000 after acquiring an additional 8,623 shares during the period. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE boosted its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 91,214 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $8,822,000 after acquiring an additional 3,188 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Merit Medical Systems by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,648,659 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $643,058,000 after acquiring an additional 63,314 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 23.9% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 54,592 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $5,555,000 after purchasing an additional 10,526 shares during the period. 99.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Merit Medical Systems

In other news, CEO Fred P. Lampropoulos sold 31,320 shares of Merit Medical Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.86, for a total value of $3,252,895.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,086,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,794,868.08. The trade was a 2.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Brian G. Lloyd sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.50, for a total transaction of $2,487,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,879,803.50. The trade was a 39.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 109,132 shares of company stock valued at $11,139,521. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Merit Medical Systems Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MMSI opened at $104.68 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $104.11 and a 200 day moving average of $100.87. The company has a quick ratio of 3.82, a current ratio of 5.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company has a market capitalization of $6.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.91. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 52 week low of $70.70 and a 52 week high of $111.45.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on MMSI shares. Barrington Research lowered their target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $115.00 to $111.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 31st. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price 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. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $116.00 price target (up previously from $114.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on Merit Medical Systems from $128.00 to $127.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.