Rice Hall James & Associates LLC Boosts Stake in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB)

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC lifted its stake in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB - Free Report) by 44.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 22,108 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 6,766 shares during the quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC owned about 0.41% of Mesa Laboratories worth $2,871,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in Mesa Laboratories during the second quarter worth $26,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC grew its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 35.2% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 741 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mesa Laboratories in the 2nd quarter worth about $183,000. Berry Wealth Group LP bought a new stake in Mesa Laboratories in the third quarter worth about $204,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 4.0% during the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 2,600 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $226,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.60% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Gary M. Owens sold 2,518 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 45,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,213,794.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Mesa Laboratories news, SVP Brian David Archbold sold 1,499 shares of Mesa Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total value of $187,375.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 45,888 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,213,794.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Mesa Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MLAB traded up $3.96 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $118.00. The stock had a trading volume of 33,542 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,387. The business's fifty day moving average price is $126.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $113.97. Mesa Laboratories, Inc. has a 52-week low of $82.86 and a 52-week high of $141.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

Mesa Laboratories (NASDAQ:MLAB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.74 by $0.55. The business had revenue of $58.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.90 million. Mesa Laboratories had a positive return on equity of 18.95% and a negative net margin of 111.89%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Mesa Laboratories, Inc. will post 7.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mesa Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Mesa Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -1.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MLAB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Mesa Laboratories from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Mesa Laboratories from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Mesa Laboratories in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock.

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.