MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Receives $90.43 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the nine analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $89.6667.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MSM. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Friday, October 31st. Wolfe Research lowered MSC Industrial Direct from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Thursday, January 8th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mitchell Jacobson acquired 95,779 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $84.92 per share, for a total transaction of $8,133,552.68. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 2,219,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $188,462,531.40. The trade was a 4.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Philip Peller bought 6,666 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price 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 $859,665.18. This trade represents a 232.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have purchased 211,342 shares of company stock worth $17,951,965 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 19.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 11.1% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,277 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $109,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 34,884 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,169,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 22,545 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,917,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Matrix Trust Co boosted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 7.3% in the second quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 2,252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $191,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Down 1.6%

MSM stock opened at $84.74 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. MSC Industrial Direct has a fifty-two week low of $68.10 and a fifty-two week high of $94.31. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $85.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $87.68. The stock has a market cap of $4.73 billion, a PE ratio of 23.15 and a beta of 0.85.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The industrial products company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.04. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.37% and a return on equity of 15.73%. The firm had revenue of $965.68 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $962.52 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.86 EPS. MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 14th will be paid a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 14th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is currently 95.08%.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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.