MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Shares Acquired by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank grew its holdings in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 73,500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.19% of MSA Safety worth $12,184,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MSA. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC increased its stake in MSA Safety by 0.3% in the third quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 21,267 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,771,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in shares of MSA Safety by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,851 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,799,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in MSA Safety by 78.4% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 182 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in MSA Safety by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,190 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in MSA Safety by 1.1% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,060 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,429,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at MSA Safety

In other news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of the 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 directly owns 3,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $584,007. This represents a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 6.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on MSA Safety from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on MSA Safety in a report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. Two 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 data from MarketBeat.com, MSA Safety has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $197.00.

MSA Safety Stock Up 0.2 %

MSA Safety stock opened at $151.73 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.04 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $160.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $168.14. MSA Safety Incorporated has a twelve month low of $148.59 and a twelve month high of $200.61.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.29%.

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.