MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Shares Sold by Strs Ohio

Strs Ohio trimmed its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,714 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,555 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $2,806,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MSM. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 465.4% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 19,687 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,678,000 after acquiring an additional 16,205 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 13,636 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,162,000 after buying an additional 447 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 115.7% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,514 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $128,000 after buying an additional 812 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 24,042 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,049,000 after buying an additional 2,974 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 34.2% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 30,438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,594,000 after buying an additional 7,749 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mitchell Jacobson sold 137,716 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.66, for a total value of $13,449,344.56. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,708,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $166,833,652.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold 232,003 shares of company stock worth $22,679,413 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 18.80% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MSM opened at $91.46 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.42 and a beta of 0.95. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a one year low of $88.14 and a one year high of $105.77. The company’s fifty day moving average is $97.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 2.01.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $935.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $946.55 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 7.89% and a return on equity of 22.58%. The business’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.45 EPS. Analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 5.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on MSM shares. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $105.00 to $102.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $107.00.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes metalworking and maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) products and services in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company's MRO products include cutting tools, measuring instruments, tooling components, metalworking products, fasteners, flat stock products, raw materials, abrasives, machinery hand and power tools, safety and janitorial supplies, plumbing supplies, materials handling products, power transmission components, and electrical supplies.