MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Shares Sold by State of Michigan Retirement System

State of Michigan Retirement System reduced its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,965 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $870,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSM. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1,142.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 261.7% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 387 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. StockNews.com lowered MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $81.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Baird R W downgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $95.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $90.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 0.7 %

MSC Industrial Direct stock opened at $82.24 on Friday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.05 and a 52 week high of $105.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 2.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $81.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.87.

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

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 9th were given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.04%. MSC Industrial Direct’s payout ratio is 64.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSC Industrial Direct

In other news, SVP Kimberly Shacklett sold 4,885 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.60, for a total transaction of $413,271.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 12,897 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,091,086.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 18.80% of the company’s stock.

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.