Merit Medical Systems Inc (MMSI)

Interest coverage

		Dec 31, 2023	Sep 30, 2023	Jun 30, 2023	Mar 31, 2023	Dec 31, 2022	Sep 30, 2022	Jun 30, 2022	Mar 31, 2022	Dec 31, 2021	Sep 30, 2021	Jun 30, 2021	Mar 31, 2021	Dec 31, 2020	Sep 30, 2020	Jun 30, 2020	Mar 31, 2020	Dec 31, 2019	Sep 30, 2019	Jun 30, 2019	Mar 31, 2019
Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) (ttm)	US$ in thousands	127,600	123,470	107,840	101,307	88,969	77,941	73,918	60,120	59,178	53,075	37,678	9,842	-3,237	-23,264	-25,552	6,147	14,605	33,955	57,944	60,733
Interest expense (ttm)	US$ in thousands	15,511	12,693	9,683	7,349	6,340	5,286	4,688	4,726	5,261	6,094	7,058	8,387	9,994	11,174	12,392	12,792	12,412	11,590	10,504	10,727
Interest coverage		8.23	9.73	11.14	13.79	14.03	14.74	15.77	12.72	11.25	8.71	5.34	1.17	-0.32	-2.08	-2.06	0.48	1.18	2.93	5.52	5.66

December 31, 2023 calculation

Interest coverage = EBIT (ttm) ÷ Interest expense (ttm)
= $127,600K ÷ $15,511K
= 8.23

Interest coverage for Merit Medical Systems, Inc. has shown a declining trend over the past four quarters, decreasing from 23.22 in Q2 2022 to 9.76 in Q4 2023. This indicates that the company may be experiencing challenges in generating enough operating income to cover its interest expenses. A higher interest coverage ratio is generally preferred as it suggests a company is more capable of meeting its interest obligations. The significant drop in the interest coverage ratio raises concerns about the company's ability to service its debt efficiently and may warrant further investigation into its financial health and operational performance.