Citadel Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB)

Citadel Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB - Free Report) by 36.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,817 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 3,898 shares during the quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Mesa Laboratories worth $899,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 81.6% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 661 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Mesa Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth about $92,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of Mesa Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at about $132,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 72.9% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,328 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $175,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Berry Wealth Group LP raised its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Berry Wealth Group LP now owns 1,657 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $219,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 90.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mesa Laboratories Stock Down 1.9%

NASDAQ:MLAB traded down $1.96 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $102.68. 42,219 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 40,239. Mesa Laboratories, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $83.68 and a fifty-two week high of $155.12. The company has a market capitalization of $557.96 million, a PE ratio of -2.22 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $126.05.

Mesa Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. Mesa Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is currently -1.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Mesa Laboratories from $120.00 to $100.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gary M. Owens sold 21,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.91, for a total value of $2,602,110.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 43,337 shares in the company, valued at $5,369,887.67. This represents a 32.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Mesa Laboratories Profile

Mesa Laboratories, Inc develops, designs, manufactures, sells, and services life sciences tools and quality control products and services in North America, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The Sterilization and Disinfection Control segment offers biological, chemical, and cleaning indicators, used to assess the effectiveness of sterilization decontamination, disinfection, and cleaning processes in the pharmaceutical, medical device, and healthcare industries.