MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSMGet Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the seven analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $83.80.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on MSM shares. Robert W. Baird increased 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Stephens lowered MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company.

Read Our Latest Report on MSC Industrial Direct

Insider Buying and Selling at MSC Industrial Direct

In other news, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total transaction of $4,518,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at $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 company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MSM. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 8,289.7% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,031 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,466,000 after acquiring an additional 16,828 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 25,490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,195,000 after purchasing an additional 6,864 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 36.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 23,114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,989,000 after purchasing an additional 6,172 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd grew its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 398.1% during the 3rd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 15,860 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,365,000 after buying an additional 12,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 892.9% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 625 shares in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $82.39 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $81.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $82.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.93 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The company has a market capitalization of $4.60 billion, a PE ratio of 19.66 and a beta of 0.91. MSC Industrial Direct has a 1-year low of $72.79 and a 1-year high of $104.76.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSMGet Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $928.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $904.90 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The business’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.13%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.15%.

About MSC Industrial Direct

(Get Free Report

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.

Featured Articles

Analyst Recommendations for MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM)

Receive News & Ratings for MSC Industrial Direct Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for MSC Industrial Direct and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.