Northern Trust Corp Trims Stake in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. $MLAB

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp has reduced its stake in Mesa Laboratories by 12.1%, now holding approximately 1.52% of the company's shares, valued at about $9.78 million.
• Mesa Laboratories announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share, with a dividend yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio currently sitting at -457.14%.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed views on Mesa Laboratories, with Wells Fargo recently downgrading the stock's price target from $100 to $67 while maintaining an average rating of "Hold."

Northern Trust Corp cut its stake in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB - Free Report) by 12.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 82,444 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 11,345 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.52% of Mesa Laboratories worth $9,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 48.3% in 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 during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mesa Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at $205,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings 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 valued at $242,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the period. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new position in Mesa Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at $293,000. 90.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Brian David Archbold sold 472 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 value of $45,840.64. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 558 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $54,192.96. The trade was a 45.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Gary M. Owens sold 1,939 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 $188,315.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 45,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,450,426.88. The trade was a 4.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 3,053 shares of company stock valued at $296,507. Insiders own 4.90% of the company's stock.

Mesa Laboratories Stock Up 6.0%

NASDAQ MLAB traded up $3.56 during trading on Thursday, reaching $63.09. 144,114 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 106,761. The stock has a market cap of $347.00 million, a P/E ratio of -450.64 and a beta of 0.82. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $72.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $99.91. Mesa Laboratories, Inc. has a 1 year low of $55.45 and a 1 year high of $155.12.

Mesa Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Mesa Laboratories's payout ratio is presently -457.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MLAB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Mesa Laboratories from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $100.00 to $67.00 in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research raised Mesa Laboratories from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Mesa Laboratories from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $113.50.

Mesa Laboratories Company 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.