Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 196,300 shares, a decrease of 17.2% from the February 29th total of 237,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 52,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.7 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Evercore ISI raised Mesa Laboratories from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 9.3% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 4,999 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,275,000 after buying an additional 427 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 54.2% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 2,668 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $680,000 after purchasing an additional 938 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Mesa Laboratories by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 14,073 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,587,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its holdings in Mesa Laboratories by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 4,523 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,153,000 after buying an additional 574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BlackRock Inc. increased its position in Mesa Laboratories by 0.4% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 924,948 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $235,751,000 after buying an additional 4,061 shares in the last quarter. 90.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mesa Laboratories Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MLAB traded up $2.48 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $109.73. 43,175 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 36,907. Mesa Laboratories has a 1-year low of $82.86 and a 1-year high of $187.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $591.88 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 645.47 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a 50-day moving average of $101.78 and a 200 day moving average of $100.75.

Mesa Laboratories (NASDAQ:MLAB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by ($0.01). Mesa Laboratories had a return on equity of 7.41% and a net margin of 0.45%. The company had revenue of $53.47 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.90 million. Research analysts anticipate that Mesa Laboratories will post 6.15 EPS for the current year.

Mesa Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Mesa Laboratories’s payout ratio is currently 376.47%.

About Mesa Laboratories

Mesa Laboratories, Inc develops, manufactures, and sells life sciences tools and quality control products and services in North America, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates in four segments: Clinical Genomics, Sterilization and Disinfection Control, Biopharmaceutical Development, and Calibration Solutions.