Sunbelt Securities Inc. Sells 156 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Sunbelt Securities Inc. lowered its stake in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 18.3% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 156 shares during the quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc.’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $55,000 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 the stock. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 85.1% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,733,228 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $216,772,000 after purchasing an additional 1,256,706 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct during the first quarter worth approximately $16,571,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 804.5% during the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 173,653 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $13,772,000 after purchasing an additional 154,454 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1,715.2% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 143,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,373,000 after purchasing an additional 135,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 775,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $78,476,000 after purchasing an additional 100,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSC Industrial Direct

In other news, SVP Kimberly Shacklett sold 4,885 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.60, for a total value of $413,271.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 12,897 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,091,086.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 18.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on MSM shares. KeyCorp lowered MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $110.00 price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Friday, June 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $81.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $90.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

MSM opened at $83.50 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $82.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $86.05. The company has a market capitalization of $4.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.22 and a beta of 0.86. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.05 and a 12-month high of $105.77.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 2nd. The industrial products company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33. The company had revenue of $979.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $979.10 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 21.31% and a net margin of 7.44%. MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.74 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 4.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct 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.