Revenue growth has cooled to 2.6% in 2026Q4, while operating margins remain thin at 4.3% due to persistent overhead and integration costs.
| Metric | Mar'26 | Mar'25 | Mar'24 | Mar'23 | Mar'22 | Mar'21 | Mar'20 | Mar'19 | Mar'18 | Mar'17 | Mar'16 | Mar'15 | Mar'14 | Mar'13 | Mar'12 | Mar'11 | Mar'10 | Mar'09 | Mar'08 | Mar'07 | Mar'06 | Mar'05 | Mar'04 | Mar'03 | Mar'02 | Mar'01 | Mar'00 | Mar'99 | Mar'98 | Mar'97 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 249.13M | 240.98M | 216.19M | 219.08M | 184.34M | 133.94M | 117.69M | 103.14M | 96.18M | 93.67M | 84.66M | 71.33M | 52.72M | 46.44M | 39.62M | 32.83M | 21.93M | 21.54M | 19.56M | 17.24M | 11.58M | 10.04M | 9.13M | 9.08M | 9.04M | 9.1M | 8.66M | 8.1M | 7.9M | 7.8M |
| Revenue Growth % | 3.38% | 11.47% | -1.32% | 18.85% | 37.63% | 13.81% | 14.11% | 7.23% | 2.68% | 10.64% | 18.69% | 35.29% | 13.54% | 17.21% | 20.68% | 49.69% | 1.82% | 10.11% | 13.43% | 48.86% | 15.36% | 10.03% | 0.49% | 0.42% | -0.62% | 5.14% | 6.86% | 2.53% | 1.28% | -3.7% |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 90.86M | 90.11M | 82.94M | 85.39M | 75.25M | 46.92M | 52.33M | 42.22M | 41.56M | 40.43M | 33.25M | 27.94M | 21.04M | 17.57M | 16.11M | 13.26M | 8.73M | 7.72M | 6.7M | 6.35M | 4.15M | 3.72M | 3.43M | 3.4M | 3.65M | 3.07M | 2.8M | 2.4M | 2.5M | 2.7M |
| COGS % of Revenue | 36.47% | 37.39% | 38.36% | 38.98% | 40.82% | 35.03% | 44.46% | 40.94% | 43.21% | 43.16% | 39.27% | 39.17% | 39.9% | 37.84% | 40.65% | 40.39% | 39.83% | 35.84% | 34.26% | 36.81% | 35.79% | 37.06% | 37.56% | 37.41% | 40.39% | 33.7% | 32.38% | 29.63% | 31.65% | 34.62% |
| Gross Profit | 158.27M | 150.87M | 133.25M | 133.69M | 109.09M | 87.01M | 65.36M | 60.92M | 54.62M | 53.24M | 51.41M | 43.39M | 31.69M | 28.86M | 23.51M | 19.57M | 13.19M | 13.82M | 12.86M | 10.89M | 7.44M | 6.32M | 5.7M | 5.68M | 5.39M | 6.03M | 5.85M | 5.7M | 5.4M | 5.1M |
| Gross Margin % | 63.53% | 62.61% | 61.64% | 61.02% | 59.18% | 64.97% | 55.54% | 59.06% | 56.79% | 56.84% | 60.73% | 60.83% | 60.1% | 62.16% | 59.35% | 59.61% | 60.17% | 64.16% | 65.74% | 63.19% | 64.21% | 62.94% | 62.44% | 62.59% | 59.61% | 66.3% | 67.62% | 70.37% | 68.35% | 65.38% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | 4.9% | 13.22% | -0.33% | 22.55% | 25.37% | 33.13% | 7.3% | 11.53% | 2.59% | 3.55% | 18.48% | 36.94% | 9.79% | 22.76% | 20.15% | 48.31% | -4.51% | 7.46% | 18.02% | 46.5% | 17.67% | 10.92% | 0.24% | 5.44% | -10.64% | 3.08% | 2.69% | 5.56% | 5.88% | -3.77% |
| Operating Expenses | 139.76M | 134.53M | 405.32M | 130.37M | 104.39M | 74.66M | 57.44M | 43.06M | 38.62M | 36.93M | 35.09M | 27.53M | 19.9M | 15.76M | 10.68M | 9.7M | 5.83M | 6.21M | 5.8M | 5.24M | 3.33M | 2.85M | 2.45M | 2.5M | 2.45M | 2.71M | 3.01M | 2.6M | 2.6M | 2.6M |
| OpEx % of Revenue | 56.1% | 55.83% | 187.49% | 59.51% | 56.63% | 55.74% | 48.81% | 41.75% | 40.15% | 39.42% | 41.45% | 38.59% | 37.75% | 33.94% | 26.97% | 29.56% | 26.57% | 28.83% | 29.64% | 30.37% | 28.72% | 28.33% | 26.84% | 27.51% | 27.08% | 29.73% | 34.75% | 32.1% | 32.91% | 33.33% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 119.45M | 115.02M | 111.49M | 109.88M | 88.62M | 64.27M | 51.08M | 39.55M | 35.08M | 32.77M | 31.12M | 24.23M | 17.58M | 13.75M | 9.32M | 8.26M | 5.16M | 5.57M | 5.26M | 4.84M | 2.97M | 2.49M | 2.12M | 2.24M | 2.16M | 2.4M | 2.39M | 2.2M | 2.1M | 2.1M |
| SG&A % of Revenue | 47.95% | 47.73% | 51.57% | 50.16% | 48.08% | 47.98% | 43.41% | 38.35% | 36.47% | 34.99% | 36.76% | 33.97% | 33.35% | 29.6% | 23.54% | 25.17% | 23.52% | 25.88% | 26.92% | 28.09% | 25.63% | 24.77% | 23.2% | 24.64% | 23.88% | 26.34% | 27.65% | 27.16% | 26.58% | 26.92% |
| Research & Development | 20.31M | 19.52M | 19.3M | 20.49M | 15.77M | 10.39M | 6.36M | 3.51M | 3.54M | 4.16M | 3.97M | 3.29M | 2.32M | 2.01M | 1.36M | 1.44M | 669K | 636K | 532K | 392K | 358K | 358K | 332K | 259.97K | 289.94K | 308.17K | 281.65K | 200K | 300K | 300K |
| R&D % of Revenue | 8.15% | 8.1% | 8.93% | 9.35% | 8.55% | 7.76% | 5.4% | 3.4% | 3.68% | 4.44% | 4.69% | 4.62% | 4.4% | 4.33% | 3.43% | 4.39% | 3.05% | 2.95% | 2.72% | 2.27% | 3.09% | 3.57% | 3.64% | 2.86% | 3.21% | 3.39% | 3.25% | 2.47% | 3.8% | 3.85% |
| Other Operating Expenses | 0 | 0 | 274.53M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -126K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 332.59K | 200K | 200K | 200K |
| Operating Income | 18.51M | 16.34M | -272.07M | 3.32M | 4.7M | 12.36M | 7.92M | 9.78M | 2.18M | 16.31M | 16.32M | 15.86M | 11.79M | 13.1M | 12.48M | 9.86M | 7.37M | 7.61M | 7.06M | 5.66M | 4.11M | 3.48M | 3.25M | 3.19M | 2.94M | 2.81M | 2.85M | 3.1M | 2.8M | 2.5M |
| Operating Margin % | 7.43% | 6.78% | -125.85% | 1.52% | 2.55% | 9.23% | 6.73% | 9.48% | 2.27% | 17.42% | 19.28% | 22.24% | 22.35% | 28.22% | 31.49% | 30.05% | 33.6% | 35.33% | 36.1% | 32.82% | 35.48% | 34.61% | 35.6% | 35.09% | 32.53% | 30.84% | 32.87% | 38.27% | 35.44% | 32.05% |
| Operating Income Growth % | 13.31% | 106% | -8295.03% | -29.39% | -61.95% | 55.98% | -19% | 348.05% | -86.62% | -0.06% | 2.89% | 34.61% | -10.07% | 5.03% | 26.49% | 33.88% | -3.15% | 7.75% | 24.77% | 37.69% | 18.27% | 6.96% | 1.96% | 8.31% | 4.84% | -1.37% | -8.22% | 10.71% | 12% | 4.17% |
| EBITDA | 41.78M | 40.86M | -240.5M | 36.45M | 29.77M | 30.02M | 20.91M | 19.25M | 11.65M | 25.05M | 23.5M | 21.52M | 15.63M | 16.54M | 14.69M | 11.71M | 8.15M | 8.4M | 7.8M | 6.33M | 4.2M | 3.56M | 3.35M | 3.3M | 3.06M | 3.33M | 3.18M | 3.3M | 3M | 2.7M |
| EBITDA Margin % | 16.77% | 16.96% | -111.25% | 16.64% | 16.15% | 22.41% | 17.77% | 18.66% | 12.12% | 26.74% | 27.75% | 30.17% | 29.64% | 35.61% | 37.09% | 35.67% | 37.18% | 38.99% | 39.9% | 36.7% | 36.29% | 35.5% | 36.66% | 36.36% | 33.8% | 36.57% | 36.72% | 40.74% | 37.97% | 34.62% |
| EBITDA Growth % | 2.25% | 116.99% | -759.74% | 22.45% | -0.83% | 43.54% | 8.64% | 65.18% | -53.48% | 6.61% | 9.19% | 37.69% | -5.49% | 12.55% | 25.49% | 43.59% | -2.88% | 7.6% | 23.31% | 50.56% | 17.9% | 6.55% | 1.34% | 8% | -8.14% | 4.73% | -3.7% | 10% | 11.11% | 0% |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 23.27M | 24.53M | 31.57M | 33.13M | 25.07M | 17.66M | 12.99M | 9.47M | 9.47M | 8.74M | 7.17M | 5.66M | 3.84M | 3.43M | 2.21M | 1.84M | 786K | 788K | 742K | 669K | 93K | 90K | 97K | 115.35K | 115.09K | 521.69K | 332.59K | 200K | 200K | 200K |
| EBIT | 18.51M | 17.82M | -269.95M | 4.38M | 7.46M | 10.33M | 9.37M | 8.62M | 2.15M | 16.31M | 16.32M | 15.86M | 11.79M | 13.1M | 12.83M | 9.86M | 7.37M | 7.61M | 7.06M | 5.66M | 4.11M | 3.48M | 3.25M | 3.19M | 2.94M | 3.33M | 2.85M | 3.1M | 3M | 2.5M |
| Net Interest Income | 0 | -11.86M | -5.7M | -4.77M | -3.88M | -7.92M | -4.54M | -1.72M | -1.85M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 86K | 195K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Income | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 107K | 960K | 1.72M | 5K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 86K | 195M | 130M | 193M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Expense | 0 | 11.86M | 5.7M | 4.77M | 3.88M | 8.02M | 5.5M | 0 | 1.85M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Income/Expense | -6.5M | -10.38M | -3.57M | -3.71M | -1.13M | -10.05M | -4.06M | -1.16M | -1.88M | -2.02M | -768K | -517K | 1.32M | -126K | -146K | -113K | 36K | 86K | 195K | 130K | 193K | 98K | 50K | 55.16K | 78.51K | 70.96K | 243.83K | 100K | 400K | 100K |
| Pretax Income | 12.01M | 5.96M | -275.65M | -389K | 3.57M | 2.3M | 3.86M | 8.62M | 301K | 14.3M | 15.55M | 15.35M | 13.1M | 12.98M | 12.33M | 9.75M | 7.4M | 7.69M | 7.26M | 5.79M | 4.3M | 3.57M | 3.3M | 3.24M | 3.02M | 2.88M | 3.09M | 3.2M | 3.2M | 2.6M |
| Pretax Margin % | 4.82% | 2.47% | -127.5% | -0.18% | 1.94% | 1.72% | 3.28% | 8.36% | 0.31% | 15.26% | 18.37% | 21.52% | 24.85% | 27.95% | 31.13% | 29.71% | 33.76% | 35.73% | 37.1% | 33.58% | 37.15% | 35.58% | 36.15% | 35.69% | 33.4% | 31.62% | 35.69% | 39.51% | 40.51% | 33.33% |
| Income Tax | 5.3M | 7.93M | -21.4M | -1.32M | 1.7M | -971K | 2.08M | 1.14M | 3.26M | 3.11M | 4.39M | 5.76M | 4.1M | 4.53M | 4.41M | 3.57M | 2.63M | 2.9M | 2.65M | 1.83M | 1.5M | 1.26M | 1.17M | 1.11M | 989.66K | 1.05M | 982.46K | 1.1M | 1.1M | 900K |
| Effective Tax Rate % | 44.13% | 133.12% | 7.76% | 339.07% | 47.65% | -42.16% | 53.96% | 13.21% | 1084.05% | 21.78% | 28.2% | 37.56% | 31.31% | 34.89% | 35.78% | 36.59% | 35.59% | 37.74% | 36.47% | 31.63% | 34.81% | 35.29% | 35.43% | 34.39% | 32.76% | 36.32% | 31.8% | 34.38% | 34.38% | 34.62% |
| Net Income | 6.71M | -1.97M | -254.25M | 930K | 1.87M | 3.27M | 1.78M | 7.48M | -2.96M | 11.18M | 11.17M | 9.58M | 9M | 8.45M | 7.92M | 6.18M | 4.77M | 4.79M | 4.61M | 3.96M | 2.81M | 2.31M | 2.13M | 2.13M | 2.03M | 1.83M | 2.11M | 2.1M | 2.1M | 1.7M |
| Net Margin % | 2.69% | -0.82% | -117.6% | 0.42% | 1.01% | 2.44% | 1.51% | 7.26% | -3.08% | 11.94% | 13.19% | 13.43% | 17.07% | 18.2% | 19.99% | 18.84% | 21.75% | 22.24% | 23.57% | 22.96% | 24.22% | 23.03% | 23.34% | 23.42% | 22.46% | 20.13% | 24.34% | 25.93% | 26.58% | 21.79% |
| Net Income Growth % | 440.02% | 99.22% | -27438.28% | -50.29% | -42.85% | 84.14% | -76.24% | 352.67% | -126.49% | 0.13% | 16.55% | 6.48% | 6.51% | 6.71% | 28.08% | 29.65% | -0.44% | 3.9% | 16.47% | 41.11% | 21.32% | 8.54% | 0.15% | 4.72% | 10.84% | -13.02% | 0.32% | 0% | 23.53% | 6.25% |
| Net Income (Continuing) | 6.71M | -1.97M | -254.25M | 930K | 1.87M | 3.27M | 1.78M | 7.48M | -2.96M | 11.18M | 11.17M | 9.58M | 9M | 8.45M | 7.92M | 6.18M | 4.77M | 4.79M | 4.61M | 3.96M | 2.81M | 2.31M | 2.13M | 2.13M | 2.03M | 1.83M | 2.11M | 2.1M | 2.1M | 1.7M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | 1.21 | -0.36 | -47.20 | 0.17 | 0.35 | 0.64 | 0.31 | 1.86 | -0.79 | 2.91 | 2.97 | 2.63 | 2.49 | 2.35 | 2.29 | 1.86 | 1.45 | 1.48 | 1.41 | 1.22 | 0.92 | 0.74 | 0.68 | 0.64 | 0.59 | 0.59 | 0.55 | 0.50 | 0.47 | 0.39 |
| EPS Growth % | 436.11% | 99.24% | -27864.71% | -51.43% | -45.31% | 106.45% | -83.33% | 335.44% | -127.15% | -2.02% | 12.93% | 5.62% | 5.96% | 2.62% | 23.12% | 28.28% | -2.03% | 4.96% | 15.57% | 32.61% | 24.32% | 8.82% | 6.25% | 8.47% | 0% | 7.27% | 10% | 6.38% | 20.51% | 34.48% |
| EPS (Basic) | 1.22 | -0.36 | -47.20 | 0.17 | 0.36 | 0.66 | 0.32 | 1.95 | -0.79 | 3.04 | 3.10 | 2.72 | 2.61 | 2.52 | 2.41 | 1.91 | 1.49 | 1.51 | 1.46 | 1.25 | 0.94 | 0.76 | 0.70 | 0.66 | 0.60 | 0.59 | 0.55 | 0.51 | 0.48 | 0.39 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 5.57M | 5.43M | 5.39M | 5.36M | 5.33M | 5.12M | 4.37M | 4.03M | 3.77M | 3.84M | 3.76M | 3.65M | 3.61M | 3.59M | 3.46M | 3.33M | 3.29M | 3.24M | 3.28M | 3.23M | 3.05M | 3.14M | 3.14M | 3.3M | 3.45M | 3.72M | 3.84M | 4.17M | 4.4M | 4.47M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 5.51M | 5.43M | 5.39M | 5.32M | 5.21M | 4.97M | 4.2M | 3.84M | 3.75M | 3.68M | 3.6M | 3.52M | 3.44M | 3.36M | 3.29M | 3.23M | 3.19M | 3.18M | 3.17M | 3.16M | 2.99M | 3.06M | 3.05M | 3.23M | 3.41M | 3.69M | 3.82M | 4.14M | 4.3M | 4.47M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | 52.49% | - | - | 366.24% | 178.46% | 96.67% | 153.09% | 32.9% | - | 21.06% | 20.62% | 22.77% | 22.1% | 21.48% | 20.77% | 24.07% | 28.16% | 26.56% | 24.73% | 32.11% | 55.33% | 55.45% | 36.15% | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Integration and Margin Volatility
According to the latest quarterly filings, MLAB's revenue growth has decelerated to a modest 2.6% in 2026Q4, reflecting a broader trend of cooling demand across its specialized life science segments as the post-pandemic laboratory spending environment continues to normalize across its core North American and European markets.
The company's top-line performance suggests that organic growth initiatives are struggling to offset the lack of significant new equipment placements. Investors should monitor whether the current revenue plateau indicates a structural saturation in its sterilization and calibration niches or merely a temporary pause in capital expenditure cycles.
Based on reported financial statements, MLAB's gross margin fluctuated significantly, reaching a high of 73.2% in 2026Q4 but dipping as low as 54.6% in 2026Q1, which suggests that the company's product mix and manufacturing costs remain highly sensitive to shifts in segment-specific demand and integration-related expenses.
While the 73.2% peak demonstrates the potential of its high-margin consumable business, the inconsistency in these figures implies that the company is still grappling with the cost profiles of its newer genomics acquisitions. This volatility warrants further investigation into whether the company can maintain these elevated levels as it scales its more complex product lines.
As indicated by the income statement data, MLAB's operating margin remains thin at 4.3% in 2026Q4, failing to scale effectively with gross profit, which suggests that the company's heavy SG&A burden and integration costs are currently preventing meaningful operating leverage from materializing for shareholders.
The persistent gap between gross and operating margins appears to be driven by high fixed costs and the ongoing integration of acquired entities. This structure suggests that until the company can rationalize its SG&A expenses, profitability will remain highly vulnerable to even minor fluctuations in top-line revenue.
Analysis of recent SEC filings reveals that MLAB's net income is frequently impacted by significant non-operating items and stock-based compensation, such as the $11.1 million charge in 2026Q4, which complicates the assessment of the company's true underlying profitability and cash-generating capacity for the period.
The frequent swings between net losses and gains suggest that reported EPS may not be a reliable indicator of operational health. Investors should focus on adjusted metrics that strip out these non-cash charges to determine if the core business is actually generating sustainable value.
Based on the provided financial data, short-sellers may focus on the company's inability to consistently convert high gross margins into bottom-line profitability, as evidenced by the 2026Q4 net loss of $4.1 million despite a robust 73.2% gross margin, signaling potential underlying operational inefficiencies.
The reliance on an acquisition-heavy strategy to drive growth may be masking a lack of organic innovation, leaving the company exposed if its integration efforts fail to yield expected synergies. This narrative suggests that the current valuation may be overly optimistic given the persistent difficulty in achieving stable, positive net margins.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying MLAB stock.
For fiscal year 2026, Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (MLAB) reported total revenue of $249.1M. This represents a 3094.0% increase compared to $7.8M in 1997.
Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (MLAB) is profitable, generating $6.7M in net income for the fiscal year ending 2026 with a net profit margin of 2.7%.
Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (MLAB) reported an operating income of $18.5M, resulting in an operating profit margin of 7.4%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (MLAB) generated $158.3M in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 63.5%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.