MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) Now Covered by Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) in a report issued on Thursday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a hold rating and a $200.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock.

Separately, B. Riley assumed coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.00.

MSA Safety Stock Performance

MSA opened at $176.40 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $172.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $178.20. MSA Safety has a 1 year low of $160.02 and a 1 year high of $200.60. The company has a market capitalization of $6.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.49 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 1.56.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.05. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 29.14% and a net margin of 15.16%. The firm had revenue of $432.68 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $449.95 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.78 EPS. Equities analysts expect that MSA Safety will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSA Safety

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MSA. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in MSA Safety by 486.0% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its holdings in MSA Safety by 690.5% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 751 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $133,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in MSA Safety by 985.1% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 803 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $143,000 after purchasing an additional 729 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new position in MSA Safety during the third quarter worth about $198,000. Finally, Kowal Investment Group LLC bought a new position in MSA Safety during the second quarter worth about $204,000. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

About MSA Safety

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.