Brokerages Set MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) PT at $197.00

Shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) have been given a consensus rating of “Buy” by the six ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $197.00.

MSA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson began coverage on MSA Safety in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on MSA Safety from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th.

MSA Safety Stock Performance

Shares of MSA opened at $146.55 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.33 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The business’s 50 day moving average is $158.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $166.82. MSA Safety has a 52-week low of $146.01 and a 52-week high of $200.61.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Analysts forecast that MSA Safety will post 8.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. MSA Safety’s payout ratio is currently 28.29%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total transaction of $114,003.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,673 shares in the company, valued at $584,007. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 6.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSA Safety

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of MSA Safety by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,883,844 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $643,825,000 after acquiring an additional 22,190 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in MSA Safety by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,999,779 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $331,503,000 after purchasing an additional 173,210 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 2.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,691,319 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $299,939,000 after purchasing an additional 40,569 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 99.2% during the fourth quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,354,310 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $224,504,000 after buying an additional 674,560 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 31.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,131,515 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $187,573,000 after buying an additional 271,264 shares during the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.