MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Holdings Reduced by American International Group Inc.

American International Group Inc. decreased its position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 49,967 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,137 shares during the period. American International Group Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of MSA Safety worth $8,436,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in MSA Safety in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 51.2% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 183 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 28.2% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 336 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at MSA Safety

In related news, CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 56,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,524,472. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.07% of the company’s stock.

MSA Safety Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MSA opened at $184.81 on Thursday. MSA Safety Incorporated has a twelve month low of $147.35 and a twelve month high of $196.02. The firm has a market cap of $7.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.38 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50 day moving average of $184.62 and a 200-day moving average of $178.88. 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 released its earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.14. MSA Safety had a net margin of 14.81% and a return on equity of 31.51%. The business had revenue of $413.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $428.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.36 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 14th. This is a positive change from MSA Safety’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of MSA Safety from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd.

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.