Two Sigma Investments LP Invests $1.46 Million in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Two Sigma Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 19,593 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,463,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MSM. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,418,260 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $255,310,000 after buying an additional 193,860 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,987,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $148,443,000 after buying an additional 448,708 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,693,256 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $126,469,000 after buying an additional 126,218 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,434,415 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $107,168,000 after buying an additional 96,335 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 127.5% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,206,811 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $90,137,000 after buying an additional 676,238 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Up 1.8%

MSM stock opened at $81.41 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.93 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.54 billion, a PE ratio of 19.43 and a beta of 0.90. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $77.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.52. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.10 and a 12 month high of $90.81.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $891.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $908.30 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.18 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th were paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 9th. MSC Industrial Direct’s payout ratio is 89.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $89.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $73.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 6th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.00.

Insider Activity at MSC Industrial Direct

In related news, Director Mitchell Jacobson purchased 27,642 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $69.77 per share, with a total value of $1,928,582.34. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,951,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $136,171,853.25. This trade represents a 1.44% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 18.30% 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.