Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New $4.87 Million Investment in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 65,221 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,871,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $920,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,693,256 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $126,469,000 after buying an additional 126,218 shares during the last quarter. LGT Group Foundation raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. LGT Group Foundation now owns 101,563 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,586,000 after acquiring an additional 3,164 shares in the last quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the fourth quarter valued at $224,000. Finally, Altrius Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 54,138 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,044,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSE:MSM opened at $79.16 on Wednesday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $72.79 and a 12-month high of $100.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $80.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.48. The firm has a market cap of $4.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.89 and a beta of 0.90.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.13. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The company had revenue of $928.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $904.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. MSC Industrial Direct’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wolfe Research started coverage on MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Stephens lowered MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.80.

MSC Industrial Direct Profile

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.