MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.04 EPS

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The industrial products company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04, RTT News reports. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 6.21%. The firm had revenue of $891.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $908.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.18 EPS. MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

NYSE MSM opened at $71.19 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $79.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $81.35. MSC Industrial Direct has a 12-month low of $70.13 and a 12-month high of $96.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of 16.99 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.78%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is currently 81.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MSM shares. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $82.20.

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.