HighTower Advisors LLC Has $1.05 Million Position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

HighTower Advisors LLC cut its position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,329 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 110 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in MSA Safety were worth $1,049,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MSA. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in MSA Safety by 78.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 182 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 120.6% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 225 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 97.6% during the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 81.3% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank increased its holdings in MSA Safety by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 520 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSA Safety Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE MSA opened at $152.85 on Thursday. MSA Safety Incorporated has a one year low of $148.23 and a one year high of $200.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $159.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $167.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.20 and a beta of 0.99.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.02. MSA Safety had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 28.64%. Research analysts expect that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current year.

MSA Safety Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. MSA Safety’s payout ratio is 28.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. DA Davidson initiated coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on MSA Safety in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of MSA Safety from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, MSA Safety presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $197.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MSA Safety news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total transaction of $114,003.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,673 shares in the company, valued at approximately $584,007. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 6.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.