Retirement Systems of Alabama Cuts Stake in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lessened its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 54,541 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,745 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $4,694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fulcrum Equity Management purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the third quarter valued at about $204,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 2.0% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 25,675 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,210,000 after acquiring an additional 511 shares in the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $248,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 38.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 962 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 641,779 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,232,000 after purchasing an additional 35,077 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price 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. Finally, Stephens downgraded MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $80,163.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares in the company, valued at $360,199.08. This trade represents a 18.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 Trading Down 1.6 %

NYSE MSM opened at $77.02 on Friday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.05 and a 1 year high of $104.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The company has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a PE ratio of 16.82 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a fifty day moving average of $83.43 and a 200 day moving average of $82.35.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $952.30 million during 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 business’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.64 EPS. Research analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.41%. MSC Industrial Direct’s payout ratio is 74.24%.

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.