MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the six brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $90.20.

A number of research firms have recently commented on MSM. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. This represents a 3.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were 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 $360,199.08. This trade represents a 18.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 18.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1,142.3% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the third quarter worth about $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 35,300.0% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 354 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Down 2.8 %

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock opened at $83.07 on Friday. MSC Industrial Direct has a 52-week low of $75.05 and a 52-week high of $104.76. The company has a 50 day moving average of $83.07 and a 200 day moving average of $83.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.14 and a beta of 0.87.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $952.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $959.74 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 6.77%. MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct will post 3.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This is an increase from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.24%.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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.