Channing Capital Management LLC Raises Holdings in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Channing Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 10.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 480,195 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 43,758 shares during the quarter. MSA Safety accounts for 2.1% of Channing Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Channing Capital Management LLC owned 1.22% of MSA Safety worth $79,602,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MSA. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of MSA Safety by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,691,319 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $299,939,000 after purchasing an additional 40,569 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 27.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 781,705 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $138,658,000 after purchasing an additional 169,168 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in MSA Safety by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 767,634 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $127,251,000 after buying an additional 17,052 shares in the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in MSA Safety by 34.2% during the fourth quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 590,718 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $97,923,000 after buying an additional 150,402 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in MSA Safety by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 424,356 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $70,345,000 after buying an additional 6,119 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on MSA Safety from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. DA Davidson started coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on MSA Safety in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $197.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

MSA Safety Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSA opened at $155.66 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.79. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $162.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.43. The stock has a market cap of $6.11 billion, a PE ratio of 21.59 and a beta of 0.99. MSA Safety Incorporated has a one year low of $153.79 and a one year high of $200.61.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.02. MSA Safety had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 28.64%. On average, analysts forecast that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. MSA Safety’s payout ratio is 28.29%.

MSA Safety Company Profile

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.