MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Shares Bought by Millennium Management LLC

Millennium Management LLC grew its position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 241.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 148,212 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 104,829 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC’s holdings in MSA Safety were worth $24,569,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MSA. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in MSA Safety by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,883,844 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $643,825,000 after purchasing an additional 22,190 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,999,779 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $331,503,000 after buying an additional 173,210 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 99.2% in the fourth quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,354,310 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $224,504,000 after buying an additional 674,560 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in MSA Safety by 31.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,131,515 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $187,573,000 after acquiring an additional 271,264 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in MSA Safety by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 806,438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $133,718,000 after acquiring an additional 24,733 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSA Safety Trading Up 0.0%

NYSE:MSA opened at $159.50 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.58. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 52-week low of $127.86 and a 52-week high of $200.61. The company has a market capitalization of $6.27 billion, a PE ratio of 22.12 and a beta of 0.96.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $421.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $402.60 million. MSA Safety had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 28.64%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.61 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. This is a positive change from MSA Safety’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MSA Safety news, Chairman Nishan J. Vartanian sold 30,000 shares of MSA Safety stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total value of $4,839,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 35,401 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,710,889.32. The trade was a 45.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total value of $114,003.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,673 shares in the company, valued at approximately $584,007. This represents a 16.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com raised MSA Safety from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 10th. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of MSA Safety from $188.00 to $183.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 target price (down from $200.00) on shares of MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $166.00 target price on shares of MSA Safety in a report on Monday, May 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $191.80.

MSA Safety Company Profile

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide.