Mesa Laboratories (NASDAQ:MLAB) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $115.87 and last traded at $116.4080, with a volume of 39619 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $107.94.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MLAB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised Mesa Laboratories from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered Mesa Laboratories from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Mesa Laboratories from $94.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $110.00.

Mesa Laboratories Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $667.24 million, a PE ratio of 141.85 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $101.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $97.04.

Mesa Laboratories (NASDAQ:MLAB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter. Mesa Laboratories had a net margin of 1.92% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The business had revenue of $60.14 million during the quarter.

Mesa Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Mesa Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.19%.

Insider Activity at Mesa Laboratories

In other Mesa Laboratories news, Director John James Sullivan sold 7,093 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.80, for a total value of $800,090.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 17,834 shares in the company, valued at $2,011,675.20. This trade represents a 28.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO John Sakys sold 2,827 shares of Mesa Laboratories stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total transaction of $253,016.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 19,785 shares in the company, valued at $1,770,757.50. This represents a 12.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 15,370 shares of company stock valued at $1,570,213 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in Mesa Laboratories by 5,366.7% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 328 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Mesa Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 115.3% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 786 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 421 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 432.9% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 842 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 684 shares in the last quarter. 90.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Mesa Laboratories

Mesa Laboratories, Inc (NASDAQ: MLAB) is a global provider of instrumentation products designed for critical process monitoring, testing and calibration. Headquartered in Lakewood, Colorado, the company serves a diverse set of end markets including healthcare, pharmaceutical, food and beverage, energy and industrial sectors. With a focus on precision measurement and validation, Mesa Laboratories helps customers ensure regulatory compliance, product safety and operational efficiency across complex manufacturing and sterilization processes.

The company’s product portfolio encompasses biological and chemical indicators for sterilization process validation, digital data loggers and sensors for environmental monitoring, and optical gas analyzers with sample-conditioning solutions for oil, gas and petrochemical applications.