Victory Capital Management Inc. Cuts Position in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Victory Capital Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 212,245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,461 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $21,492,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Duality Advisers LP purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,668,000. Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 42,097 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,263,000 after purchasing an additional 12,088 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the fourth quarter worth about $1,316,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 39.9% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 462,756 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,420,000 after purchasing an additional 131,943 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 15.4% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 139,088 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $13,651,000 after purchasing an additional 18,559 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MSM shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $110.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Monday, April 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.00.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

MSM stock opened at $92.28 on Friday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $88.98 and a 1 year high of $105.77. The company has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.57 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $95.13 and a 200 day moving average of $97.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.02. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 7.89% and a return on equity of 22.58%. The company had revenue of $935.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $946.55 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.45 earnings per share. MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 5.69 EPS for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th were paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 8th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is 59.61%.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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.