New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 30,781 MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 30,781 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,299,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.06% of MSC Industrial Direct as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 7.9% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 52,148 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,488,000 after purchasing an additional 3,840 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 24.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 5,595 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $482,000 after buying an additional 1,092 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 43.4% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 18,371 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,581,000 after buying an additional 5,563 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the third quarter worth about $1,290,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 29.8% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 11,820 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,017,000 after acquiring an additional 2,717 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Down 3.4 %

NYSE:MSM opened at $77.77 on Friday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $72.79 and a 1-year high of $96.75. 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 $4.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.56 and a beta of 0.90. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $80.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.47.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.13. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 6.21%. The firm had revenue of $928.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $904.90 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.25 earnings per share. MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.37%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on MSM shares. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. Stephens downgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.80.

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.