MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM Shares Sold by Deprince Race & Zollo Inc.

Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. lessened its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 11.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 545,423 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 72,255 shares during the quarter. MSC Industrial Direct comprises about 1.0% of Deprince Race & Zollo Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. owned 0.98% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $50,255,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSM. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter valued at $694,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 52.9% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,258 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 781 shares in the last quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the 3rd quarter valued at about $323,000. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,744 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $253,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 238.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,046 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $557,000 after purchasing an additional 4,262 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wall Street Zen downgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. Zacks Research cut MSC Industrial Direct from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Wolfe Research lowered shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $91.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, Director Philip Peller bought 6,666 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $90.14 per share, with a total value of $600,873.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $859,665.18. The trade was a 232.18% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mitchell Jacobson purchased 22,870 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $84.96 per share, for a total transaction of $1,943,035.20. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 2,328,192 shares in the company, valued at $197,803,192.32. This represents a 0.99% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders acquired 211,342 shares of company stock valued at $17,951,965 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 19.00% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Up 0.5%

MSC Industrial Direct stock opened at $87.44 on Friday. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.10 and a twelve month high of $94.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market cap of $4.88 billion, a PE ratio of 24.56 and a beta of 0.84. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $86.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.48.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.06. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 5.29%.The firm had revenue of $978.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $964.03 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.03 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 14th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 14th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.75%.

MSC Industrial Direct Profile

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc (NYSE: MSM) is a leading distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) products serving a broad range of industrial customers across North America. The company offers an extensive portfolio of cutting tools, abrasives, measuring and inspection instruments, fasteners, safety supplies and other essential components used in manufacturing, metalworking and production environments. MSC delivers products through a multi-channel distribution network, including an extensive branch system, e-commerce platform and dedicated sales force.

In addition to its core product offerings, MSC Industrial Direct provides value-added services designed to improve productivity and reduce downtime for its customers.