Mesa Laboratories (NASDAQ:MLAB) Trading Up 12.3% Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB - Get Free Report) were up 12.3% during trading on Tuesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $143.94 and last traded at $150.43. Approximately 4,303 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 28,974 shares. The stock had previously closed at $133.93.

The medical instruments supplier reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.66. Mesa Laboratories had a negative net margin of 107.56% and a positive return on equity of 28.52%.

Mesa Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Mesa Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -1.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Mesa Laboratories from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mesa Laboratories

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MLAB. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,755 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Berry Wealth Group LP lifted its position in Mesa Laboratories by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Berry Wealth Group LP now owns 1,657 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $219,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank boosted its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 6.5% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 1,588 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 34.1% in 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. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 3,394 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $448,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 90.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mesa Laboratories Stock Performance

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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $134.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $125.77. The stock has a market cap of $802.50 million, a P/E ratio of -3.24 and a beta of 0.83.

About Mesa Laboratories

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.