Meros Investment Management LP Has $3.79 Million Stock Position in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB)

Key Points

• Meros Investment Management LP has reduced its stake in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. by 20.6%, now holding 31,964 shares worth approximately $3.79 million, making it the fund's 20th largest position.
• Mesa Laboratories announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share, to be paid on September 15th, which represents a 0.9% yield and a payout ratio of -457.14%.
• Analysts have adjusted ratings for Mesa Laboratories, with Wall Street Zen lowering it from "buy" to "hold," while Wells Fargo upgraded it from "underweight" to "equal weight" with a new price target of $67.00.

Meros Investment Management LP decreased its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB - Free Report) by 20.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,964 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 8,299 shares during the period. Mesa Laboratories accounts for approximately 2.2% of Meros Investment Management LP's portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Meros Investment Management LP owned about 0.59% of Mesa Laboratories worth $3,793,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MLAB. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 48.3% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,323 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $157,000 after buying an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 72.9% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,328 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $175,000 after buying an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC bought a new position in Mesa Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at about $205,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 22.4% during the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,036 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 18.7% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,461 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $292,000 after buying an additional 388 shares in the last quarter. 90.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mesa Laboratories Trading Up 1.4%

Mesa Laboratories stock opened at $68.87 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.66. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $84.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $110.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $378.92 million, a PE ratio of -491.93 and a beta of 0.83. Mesa Laboratories, Inc. has a 52 week low of $55.45 and a 52 week high of $155.12.

Mesa Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Mesa Laboratories's payout ratio is currently -457.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Mesa Laboratories from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Mesa Laboratories from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 7th.

Insider Activity at Mesa Laboratories

In related news, CEO Gary M. Owens sold 1,939 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total transaction of $188,315.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 45,824 shares in the company, valued at $4,450,426.88. The trade was a 4.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO John Sakys sold 642 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total value of $62,351.04. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 12,865 shares in the company, valued at $1,249,448.80. This represents a 4.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,053 shares of company stock worth $296,507 over the last three months. Company insiders own 4.90% 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.

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