MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank reduced its stake in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 87,700 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 900 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.16% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $7,547,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the 1st quarter valued at $16,571,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 68.5% in the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 157,252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $15,458,000 after buying an additional 63,955 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 85.1% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,733,228 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $216,772,000 after buying an additional 1,256,706 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,101,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 892.9% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 625 shares in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock opened at $87.15 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $83.62 and a 200 day moving average of $83.08. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.05 and a 12 month high of $104.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.03 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 0.90.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.05). MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.77% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The firm had revenue of $952.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $959.74 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.64 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.90%. This is a boost from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.24%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $90.20.

Insider Activity at MSC Industrial Direct

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total value of $4,518,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,402,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $126,761,435.64. This trade represents a 3.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value of $80,163.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares in the company, valued at $360,199.08. This represents a 18.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.