The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 1,443 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,468 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,443 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $2,724,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 20,179 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,507,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,325 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $174,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings 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 during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 38,611 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,884,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 54.0% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 476 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 4th. Wolfe Research raised MSC Industrial Direct to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $82.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mitchell Jacobson acquired 27,642 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $69.77 per share, for a total transaction of $1,928,582.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,951,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $136,171,853.25. The trade was a 1.44 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 18.30% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Up 0.1 %

MSM opened at $76.11 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market capitalization of $4.24 billion, a PE ratio of 18.16 and a beta of 0.90. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.10 and a 52 week high of $94.31. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.93.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The company had revenue of $891.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $908.30 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 earnings per share. MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 9th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is currently 89.71%.

MSC Industrial Direct Company 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.