William Blair Has Negative Outlook for MSM FY2026 Earnings

MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) – Stock analysts at William Blair reduced their FY2026 earnings estimates for MSC Industrial Direct in a research note issued on Thursday, January 2nd. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now expects that the industrial products company will post earnings per share of $4.04 for the year, down from their previous estimate of $4.74. The consensus estimate for MSC Industrial Direct’s current full-year earnings is $3.63 per share.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on MSM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Stephens cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 0.7 %

MSM opened at $79.61 on Monday. MSC Industrial Direct has a one year low of $72.79 and a one year high of $104.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $81.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.38 and a beta of 0.91.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $952.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $959.74 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.77% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The business’s revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.64 earnings per share.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.27%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.24%.

Insider Activity

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $80,163.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $360,199.08. The trade was a 18.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total value of $4,518,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. This represents a 3.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 18.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 442.1% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 309 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC increased its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 35,300.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 354 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 57.0% in the 3rd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 372 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 53.0% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 407 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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.