Wolfe Research Begins Coverage on MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM)

Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage issued an outperform rating and a $95.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on MSM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective 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. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Stephens cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.80.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of MSM opened at $81.40 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.43 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.93 and a quick ratio of 0.90. MSC Industrial Direct has a one year low of $72.79 and a one year high of $104.76. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $81.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.88.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 6.21%. The firm had revenue of $928.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $904.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.25 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct will post 3.53 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.18%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $80,163.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,044 shares in the company, valued at $360,199.08. The trade was a 18.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total value of $4,518,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,402,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. This 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 corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MSM. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position 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 valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 35,300.0% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 354 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 57.0% during the third quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 372 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 53.0% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 407 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.