Raymond James Financial Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. $MLAB

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. by 6.5%, owning a total of 264,013 shares valued at approximately $31.3 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Mesa Laboratories, with an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $113.50.
• Mesa Laboratories announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16, representing an annualized yield of 0.9%, with the ex-dividend date on August 29th.

Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB - Free Report) by 6.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 264,013 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 16,218 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 4.86% of Mesa Laboratories worth $31,328,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 0.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 384,613 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $45,638,000 after buying an additional 1,757 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 191.8% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 151,862 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $20,026,000 after buying an additional 99,819 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 93,789 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $12,368,000 after buying an additional 1,825 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 86,286 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $11,379,000 after purchasing an additional 8,092 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 27.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 68,474 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $9,030,000 after purchasing an additional 14,863 shares in the last quarter. 90.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MLAB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Mesa Laboratories from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of 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 research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Mesa Laboratories from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $113.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Brian David Archbold sold 472 shares of Mesa Laboratories stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total transaction of $45,840.64. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 558 shares in the company, valued at $54,192.96. This trade represents a 45.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary M. Owens sold 1,939 shares of Mesa Laboratories stock in a transaction on 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 owned 45,824 shares in the company, valued at $4,450,426.88. This represents a 4.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 3,053 shares of company stock valued at $296,507. Company insiders own 4.90% of the company's stock.

Mesa Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of MLAB opened at $72.96 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $401.28 million, a P/E ratio of -521.14 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $80.87 and a 200 day moving average of $107.46. Mesa Laboratories, Inc. has a twelve month low of $55.45 and a twelve month high of $155.12.

Mesa Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Mesa Laboratories's payout ratio is -457.14%.

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.

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