Mesa Laboratories (NASDAQ:MLAB) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Mesa Laboratories Trading Up 8.4%

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $100.60 and its 200-day moving average is $96.46. The company has a market cap of $655.09 million, a P/E ratio of 139.26 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73.

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

Mesa Laboratories Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Mesa Laboratories

In related news, CAO Lyndsey Elizabeth Crennen sold 442 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total value of $39,559.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,020 shares in the company, valued at $180,790. The trade was a 17.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO John Sakys sold 2,827 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total value 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 trade 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 15,370 shares of company stock valued at $1,570,213 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MLAB. Boston Partners increased its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 86.6% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 213,376 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $16,752,000 after buying an additional 99,019 shares in the last quarter. Ranger Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in Mesa Laboratories during the 2nd quarter valued at about $17,321,000. Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor purchased a new stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories during the 2nd quarter valued at about $15,507,000. Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 153,352 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $12,038,000 after acquiring an additional 4,794 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennedy Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 19.0% in the fourth quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 144,606 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $11,352,000 after acquiring an additional 23,060 shares during the period. 90.60% of the stock is owned by 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.