Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Lowers Stock Holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 1.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 175,135 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,245 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned approximately 0.31% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $15,072,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of MSM. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 85.1% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,733,228 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $216,772,000 after buying an additional 1,256,706 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 938,980 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $74,467,000 after acquiring an additional 61,022 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 12.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 765,578 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $60,718,000 after purchasing an additional 84,967 shares during the period. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 606,702 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $48,118,000 after purchasing an additional 11,257 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Seizert Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 361,783 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,135,000 after purchasing an additional 11,585 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

NYSE MSM opened at $81.36 on Thursday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.05 and a 12-month high of $104.76. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $83.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $83.27. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.76 and a beta of 0.87.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $952.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $959.74 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.77% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. This is an increase from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. MSC Industrial Direct’s payout ratio is currently 74.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSC Industrial Direct

In other news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total value of $4,518,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. This represents a 3.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value of $80,163.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $360,199.08. This trade represents a 18.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $90.20.

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.