Artemis Investment Management LLP Sells 1,498 Shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Artemis Investment Management LLP reduced its position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 38.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,498 shares during the quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP’s holdings in MSA Safety were worth $455,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MSA. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in MSA Safety in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in MSA Safety in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in MSA Safety by 51.2% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 183 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of MSA Safety during the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 28.2% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 336 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MSA Safety Price Performance

Shares of MSA stock traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $187.67. 315,264 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 152,856. The company has a market capitalization of $7.39 billion, a PE ratio of 27.81 and a beta of 0.99. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 12-month low of $147.35 and a 12-month high of $196.02. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $184.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $179.49. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $413.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $428.38 million. MSA Safety had a net margin of 14.81% and a return on equity of 31.51%. The business’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.36 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current year.

MSA Safety Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th were issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.09%. This is a boost from MSA Safety’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. MSA Safety’s payout ratio is 30.22%.

Insider Activity at MSA Safety

In other news, CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 11,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.29, for a total transaction of $2,038,190.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 56,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,524,472. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 6.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

MSA Safety Company Profile

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide.