Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 664 Shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lessened its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MMSI) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,047 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 664 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned 0.08% of Merit Medical Systems worth $4,357,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Merit Medical Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $518,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its holdings in Merit Medical Systems by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 5,391 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $521,000 after buying an additional 1,215 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 72,435 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $7,006,000 after buying an additional 4,891 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 114,500 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $11,074,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Merit Medical Systems by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,347 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. 99.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merit Medical Systems Price Performance

Shares of MMSI opened at $104.74 on Wednesday. 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $104.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.92. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $70.70 and a 1-year high of $111.45. The company has a market cap of $6.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.34, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.91.

Insider Transactions at Merit Medical Systems

In other news, Director Stephen C. Evans sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.31, for a total value of $526,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $490,428.67. This trade represents a 51.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Brian G. Lloyd sold 25,000 shares of the business’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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,993 shares in the company, valued at $3,879,803.50. The trade was a 39.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 109,132 shares of company stock worth $11,139,521 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MMSI shares. 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. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $116.00 price target (up from $114.00) on shares of Merit Medical Systems in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on Merit Medical Systems from $122.00 to $116.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Barrington Research reduced their price target on Merit Medical Systems from $115.00 to $111.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merit Medical Systems presently has an average 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.