Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Stock Position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 437,803 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,836 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in MSA Safety were worth $77,634,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of MSA. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its position in MSA Safety by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 97,719 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $17,329,000 after purchasing an additional 2,282 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 1.1% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,060 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,429,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 27.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 781,705 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $138,658,000 after acquiring an additional 169,168 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in MSA Safety by 62.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,688 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,959,000 after acquiring an additional 6,384 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI bought a new position in MSA Safety during the 3rd quarter worth about $198,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

MSA Safety Price Performance

NYSE MSA opened at $165.37 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.90 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $171.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $177.73. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 1 year low of $160.02 and a 1 year high of $200.60.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.05. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 29.14% and a net margin of 15.16%. The business had revenue of $432.68 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $449.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. MSA Safety’s payout ratio is 29.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MSA. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. B. Riley started coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Finally, DA Davidson assumed coverage on MSA Safety in a report on Thursday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $202.50.

About MSA Safety

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide.