Valley National Advisers Inc. Sells 913 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Valley National Advisers Inc. trimmed its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 2.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,139 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 913 shares during the quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. owned about 0.06% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $3,021,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MSM. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 488,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,916,000 after buying an additional 51,866 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. raised its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 34,087 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,346,000 after purchasing an additional 1,442 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the third quarter worth $490,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 156.7% during the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 53,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,220,000 after buying an additional 32,467 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group lifted its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 3,288 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $323,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Down 1.9 %

MSM stock traded down $1.49 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $78.53. 541,366 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 534,044. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.05 and a 52 week high of $105.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market cap of $4.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.10 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $86.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.68.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 2nd. The industrial products company reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.33. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 7.89% and a return on equity of 22.58%. The firm had revenue of $979.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $979.10 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.74 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 9th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 9th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on MSM. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $95.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com lowered shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 8th. KeyCorp lowered shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Baird R W downgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $90.20.

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.