Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 41,058 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Victory Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 20.1% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 163,494 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 41,058 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $14,070,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSM. Blair William & Co. IL increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 15.1% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 4,561 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $443,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 183.6% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 22,323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,142,000 after purchasing an additional 14,451 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 261.7% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 387 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Natixis bought a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the first quarter worth about $320,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 730.1% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 938 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $91,000 after buying an additional 825 shares in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at MSC Industrial Direct

In related news, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value of $80,163.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $360,199.08. This trade represents a 18.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total transaction of $4,518,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. The trade was a 3.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 18.80% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of MSM opened at $80.62 on Wednesday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.05 and a 12-month high of $104.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market capitalization of $4.51 billion, a PE ratio of 17.60 and a beta of 0.87. The business’s 50 day moving average is $83.20 and its 200 day moving average is $83.28.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $952.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $959.74 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 6.77%. MSC Industrial Direct’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.64 EPS. Research analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This is a positive change from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.22%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $90.20.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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.