William Blair Issues Pessimistic Estimate for MSM Earnings

MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) – William Blair lowered their Q3 2025 earnings per share estimates for MSC Industrial Direct in a research report issued on Thursday, April 3rd. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now forecasts that the industrial products company will post earnings per share of $1.05 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $1.07. The consensus estimate for MSC Industrial Direct’s current full-year earnings is $3.57 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for MSC Industrial Direct’s Q4 2025 earnings at $0.88 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.91 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.94 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.16 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.91 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $4.41 EPS.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The business had revenue of $891.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $908.30 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.18 EPS. MSC Industrial Direct’s quarterly revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Wolfe Research started coverage on MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Loop Capital cut their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $82.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MSM opened at $71.19 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.99 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.93. MSC Industrial Direct has a fifty-two week low of $70.13 and a fifty-two week high of $95.88. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $79.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $81.34.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barclays PLC raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 36.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 25,490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,195,000 after acquiring an additional 6,864 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 12,676 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 26,035 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,945,000 after purchasing an additional 2,136 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 155,601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,622,000 after purchasing an additional 1,418 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,654,000. 79.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is presently 81.15%.

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.