Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB) Shares Purchased by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB - Free Report) by 29.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,406 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 1,906 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 0.15% of Mesa Laboratories worth $1,092,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Amalgamated Bank boosted its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 6.5% in the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 1,588 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Mesa Laboratories by 34.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 393 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 11,461 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,488,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth $70,000. 90.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mesa Laboratories Stock Down 1.4 %

Mesa Laboratories stock traded down $1.94 during trading on Friday, reaching $140.47. 17,799 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 25,807. Mesa Laboratories, Inc. has a 52-week low of $83.68 and a 52-week high of $149.50. The firm has a market cap of $762.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.08 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.70. The company's 50-day moving average is $128.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $123.86.

Mesa Laboratories (NASDAQ:MLAB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $57.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $58.60 million. Mesa Laboratories had a positive return on equity of 28.52% and a negative net margin of 107.56%. On average, analysts predict that Mesa Laboratories, Inc. will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Mesa Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. Mesa Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is currently -1.40%.

Insider Transactions at Mesa Laboratories

In other news, CEO Gary M. Owens sold 2,518 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total transaction of $286,095.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 45,888 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,213,794.56. This trade represents a 5.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Mesa Laboratories from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com cut Mesa Laboratories from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th.

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.