Merit Medical Systems (Nasdaq: MMSI) reported earnings on April 24. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Merit Medical Systems beat slightly on revenue and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue grew and GAAP earnings per share dropped significantly.

Gross margin expanded, operating margin shrank, and net margin contracted.

Revenue details
Merit Medical Systems notched revenue of $95.6 million. The four analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ foresaw revenue of $94.0 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 10% higher than the prior-year quarter's $86.6 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
EPS came in at $0.14. The five earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.13 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.14 for Q1 were 22% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.18 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 46.2%, 30 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 8.6%, 330 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 6.0%, 170 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $99.9 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.15.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $395.3 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.59.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 89 members out of 94 rating the stock outperform, and five members rating it underperform. Among 20 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), all 20 give Merit Medical Systems a green thumbs-up.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Merit Medical Systems is outperform, with an average price target of $15.50.

Over the decades, small-cap stocks like Merit Medical Systems have provided market-beating returns, provided they're value-priced and have solid businesses. Read about a pair of companies with a lock on their markets in "Too Small to Fail: Two Small Caps the Government Won't Let Go Broke." Click here for instant access to this free report.