Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Acquires New Position in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,619 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $420,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 53.0% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 407 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC raised its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 2.4% in the third quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 6,925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $596,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 54.0% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 476 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 6.5% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 4.9% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 3,761 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $324,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity 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 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 18.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on MSM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Stephens lowered shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.80.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $80.21 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.14 and a beta of 0.91. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $72.79 and a 12 month high of $104.76. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $80.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.05. 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 (NYSE:MSM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $928.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $904.90 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th were given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 15th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.15%.

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.