Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Purchases 17,538 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 46.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 55,061 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,538 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned 0.10% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $5,080,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Horizon Corp raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 101.0% in the first quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 71.7% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 503 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 42.4% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 514 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 130.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 576 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $130.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. DA Davidson boosted their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.43.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

MSC Industrial Direct stock opened at $124.54 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.08 and a beta of 0.83. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $115.22 and its 200 day moving average is $99.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $78.80 and a 52-week high of $127.51.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.15. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 17.34%. The business had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 84.06%.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

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.