MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $119.07 and last traded at $117.9630, with a volume of 10976 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $115.59.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MSM. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Monday, April 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.71.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.02 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $103.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $93.49.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $917.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $931.69 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 16.06% and a net margin of 5.42%.MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.72 EPS. Research analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 8th were issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 8th. MSC Industrial Direct’s payout ratio is 93.55%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MSM. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 257.4% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 101.0% during the first quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 71.7% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 503 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 130.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 576 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

About MSC Industrial Direct

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc (NYSE: MSM) is a leading distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) products serving a broad range of industrial customers across North America. The company offers an extensive portfolio of cutting tools, abrasives, measuring and inspection instruments, fasteners, safety supplies and other essential components used in manufacturing, metalworking and production environments. MSC delivers products through a multi-channel distribution network, including an extensive branch system, e-commerce platform and dedicated sales force.

In addition to its core product offerings, MSC Industrial Direct provides value-added services designed to improve productivity and reduce downtime for its customers.