MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $83.80.

A number of research firms have weighed in on MSM. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Stephens cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $79.18 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $80.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $81.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90 and a beta of 0.91. MSC Industrial Direct has a 1 year low of $72.79 and a 1 year high of $104.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.93 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $928.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $904.90 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The company’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th were paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.29%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is 81.15%.

Institutional Trading of MSC Industrial Direct

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the fourth quarter worth $609,000. Vise Technologies Inc. lifted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 38.8% in the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 4,319 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 1,207 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 279,557 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,880,000 after buying an additional 48,411 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 312.5% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 236,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $17,635,000 after buying an additional 178,870 shares during the period. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the fourth quarter valued at $433,000. Institutional investors own 79.26% 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.