Rockland Trust Co. Buys 5,674 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Rockland Trust Co. boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 50.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 16,917 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,674 shares during the quarter. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $1,264,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quent Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 57.0% in the third quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 372 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 53.0% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 407 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 6,925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $596,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $244,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 3,761 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $324,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on MSM shares. Stephens cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $81.00.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

NYSE:MSM opened at $82.04 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.91 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a 50 day moving average of $82.11 and a 200 day moving average of $81.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 0.90. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $72.79 and a 1-year high of $104.76.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.13. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.77% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The firm had revenue of $928.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $904.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.25 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.14%. MSC Industrial Direct’s payout ratio is 81.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total transaction of $4,518,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at $126,761,435.64. This represents a 3.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value of $80,163.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 18.30% of the company’s stock.

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.