In a recent SEC filing, a top shareholder of pharmaceutical instruments manufacturer Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ: MLAB), John James Sullivan, revealed that he bought 18,576 shares of the company for over $2.09 million on July 5.
Shares of the company slipped 1.4% to close at $201.66 on Wednesday.
According to the SEC filing, Sullivan, also a Director of the company, lapped up the above-mentioned number of shares in two transactions. He bought 3,576 shares at an average price of $70.56 per share and then bought 15,000 shares at a per-share price of $122.66.
Sullivan now owns 43,450 shares of the company.
On June 7, the Director sold MLAB shares worth about $1.1 million. Surprisingly, he bought the company’s stock worth about $437,000 the same day.
Insider Confidence Signal is Neutral
The TipRanks Insider Trading Activity tool shows that insiders’ confidence in MLAB is currently Neutral. This rating is based on informative transactions by five corporate insiders over the past three months. As per TipRanks, Corporate Insiders have bought MLAB shares worth $1.5 million over this period.
Interestingly, TipRanks also provides a list of hot stocks that boasts of either a Very Positive or Positive insider confidence signal.
There is Optimism, but Be Cautious
As of now, the Street is cautiously optimistic about the stock and has a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on one Buys and one Holds. MLAB’s average price forecast of $232.50 implies that the stock has upside potential of 15.3% from current levels. Shares have declined 26.7% over the past year.
Recently, Brandon Couillard of Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with price target of $265, which implies upside potential of 31.4% from current levels.
Key Takeaway
Last month, James Sullivan’s transaction activities gave a mixed signal. However, with his recent transactions, Sullivan has reposed faith in the company’s prospects and the stock seems to be set for a substantial upside.
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