MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Shares Bought by Impax Asset Management Group plc

Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its position in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 28.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,089 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned approximately 0.11% of MSA Safety worth $7,474,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in MSA Safety by 78.4% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 182 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of MSA Safety by 97.6% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 486.0% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of MSA Safety by 81.3% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank lifted its stake in MSA Safety by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 520 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $86,000 after buying an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on MSA Safety from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. B. Riley began coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. Finally, DA Davidson began coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $197.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSA Safety

In other MSA Safety news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of MSA Safety stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total value of $114,003.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,673 shares in the company, valued at $584,007. This trade represents a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 6.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

MSA Safety Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE MSA opened at $160.92 on Tuesday. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 1 year low of $153.79 and a 1 year high of $200.60. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $163.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $170.67. The firm has a market cap of $6.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.32 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.79.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.02. MSA Safety had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 28.64%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.29%.

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.