MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) Research Coverage Started at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) in a research note released on Thursday morning, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage issued an outperform rating and a $95.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock.

MSM has been the subject of several other reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Stephens lowered MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.80.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE MSM opened at $81.87 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $81.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $81.92. MSC Industrial Direct has a 12-month low of $72.79 and a 12-month high of $104.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.58 billion, a PE ratio of 19.54 and a beta of 0.91.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.13. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 6.21%. The firm had revenue of $928.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $904.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.25 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct will post 3.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $80,163.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $360,199.08. This represents a 18.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. This trade represents a 3.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the third quarter valued at $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake 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 worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 35,300.0% during 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 lifted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 57.0% in the third quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 372 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 53.0% during the third 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 in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.