Victory Capital Management Inc. Acquires 6,643 Shares of Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB)

Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB) by 90.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,001 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,643 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 0.26% of Mesa Laboratories worth $1,818,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Amalgamated Bank grew its stake in Mesa Laboratories by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 1,588 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $206,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 4.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Mesa Laboratories by 6.5% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,873 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $316,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in Mesa Laboratories during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its stake in Mesa Laboratories by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 6,968 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $761,000 after acquiring an additional 494 shares during the period. 90.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Mesa Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Mesa Laboratories from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Mesa Laboratories in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $120.00 price target for the company.

Mesa Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of MLAB opened at $109.09 on Monday. 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 market capitalization of $592.36 million, a P/E ratio of -2.39 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $121.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $114.52. Mesa Laboratories, Inc. has a 52 week low of $83.68 and a 52 week high of $141.17.

Mesa Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Mesa Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is presently -1.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Gary M. Owens sold 2,518 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 45,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,213,794.56. This represents a 5.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Brian David Archbold sold 1,499 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total transaction of $187,375.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.