Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Has $66.36 Million Stock Holdings in Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 772,058 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 108,269 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned 1.33% of Merit Medical Systems worth $66,358,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Congress Asset Management Co. MA lifted its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 4,411.3% in the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 518,485 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $39,275,000 after acquiring an additional 506,992 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Merit Medical Systems during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,165,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Merit Medical Systems by 818.6% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 278,452 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $21,151,000 after buying an additional 248,140 shares during the period. F M Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems in the second quarter valued at approximately $12,550,000. Finally, Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,250,368 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $193,419,000 after acquiring an additional 75,885 shares during the period. 99.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merit Medical Systems Price Performance

Merit Medical Systems stock opened at $99.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 4.64 and a current ratio of 6.24. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 52 week low of $62.58 and a 52 week high of $101.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $91.73 and a 200-day moving average of $83.10.

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.04. Merit Medical Systems had a return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 9.02%. The firm had revenue of $338.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $334.94 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Merit Medical Systems, Inc. will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merit Medical Systems

In related news, Director F. Ann Millner sold 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $1,062,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 32,391 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,753,235. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Barrington Research upped their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $100.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $85.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $96.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Merit Medical Systems from $92.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned 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 $101.82.

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.