Wall Street Zen Upgrades MSA Safety Incorporporated (NYSE:MSA) to “Buy”

MSA Safety Incorporporated (NYSE:MSA) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings upgraded MSA Safety Incorporporated from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $186.50.

MSA Safety Incorporporated Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of MSA stock opened at $173.84 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.52 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 3.08, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $161.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $167.83. MSA Safety Incorporporated has a twelve month low of $127.86 and a twelve month high of $182.85.

MSA Safety Incorporporated (NYSE:MSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $468.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $461.37 million. MSA Safety Incorporporated had a net margin of 15.02% and a return on equity of 25.24%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that MSA Safety Incorporporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 333 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.00, for a total transaction of $53,613.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $713,874. The trade was a 6.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ruane Cunniff & Goldfarb L.P. purchased a new stake in MSA Safety Incorporporated during the second quarter valued at about $158,997,000. Cooke & Bieler LP raised its holdings in shares of MSA Safety Incorporporated by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 824,620 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $141,892,000 after purchasing an additional 10,858 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of MSA Safety Incorporporated by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 754,748 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $129,866,000 after purchasing an additional 16,576 shares in the last quarter. M&G PLC grew its holdings in shares of MSA Safety Incorporporated by 5,607.2% during the 2nd quarter. M&G PLC now owns 722,251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $121,338,000 after purchasing an additional 709,596 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of MSA Safety Incorporporated by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 616,690 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $106,114,000 after purchasing an additional 1,803 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About MSA Safety Incorporporated

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures and supplies a wide range of safety products designed to protect workers in hazardous environments. The company’s offerings span personal protective equipment such as industrial helmets, face shields, protective clothing and fall protection devices, as well as fixed and portable gas detection and monitoring systems. MSA’s products are used in industries including oil and gas, mining, construction, fire service, and chemical processing to guard against risks such as gas leaks, impacts, flame exposure and falls from height.

Key product lines include self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) and air-purifying respirators, gas detectors and sensors, head and face protection, and fall arrest systems.