Meros Investment Management LP Has $3.79 Million Stock Holdings in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. $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 reduced its stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB - Free Report) by 20.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,964 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 8,299 shares during the quarter. Mesa Laboratories comprises about 2.2% of Meros Investment Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Meros Investment Management LP owned 0.59% of Mesa Laboratories worth $3,793,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at about $205,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in Mesa Laboratories by 22.4% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,036 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $242,000 after acquiring an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Mesa Laboratories by 18.7% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,461 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 388 shares in the last quarter. 90.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mesa Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of MLAB traded down $0.76 on Thursday, reaching $68.11. 47,623 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 85,132. The firm has a market cap of $374.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -486.36 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.47. Mesa Laboratories, Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.45 and a 12 month high of $155.12. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $82.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.58.

Mesa Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Mesa Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is -457.14%.

Insider Activity

In other Mesa Laboratories news, CFO John Sakys sold 642 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,249,448.80. This represents a 4.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary M. Owens sold 1,939 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total value of $188,315.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 45,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,450,426.88. This trade represents a 4.06% 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 valued at $296,507 over the last 90 days. 4.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MLAB has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Mesa Laboratories from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Mesa Laboratories from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $67.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Mesa Laboratories from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $113.50.

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.