MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Stock Now Rated “Moderate Buy” by Wall Street Brokerages

MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $133.22.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MSM. Stephens raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. DA Davidson set a $155.00 price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $152.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Friday, October 23rd.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock traded down $0.87 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $118.56. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 480,065 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,031,985. MSC Industrial Direct has a 1-year low of $78.80 and a 1-year high of $133.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.79 and a beta of 0.83. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $122.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $110.84.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 18.72% and a net margin of 5.55%. MSC Industrial Direct’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.09 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct will post 5.51 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be paid a $0.89 dividend. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. This is a boost from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.87. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Reuben E. Slone bought 433 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $115.77 per share, for a total transaction of $50,128.41. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,128.41. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mitchell Jacobson bought 250,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $115.94 per share, for a total transaction of $28,985,000.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 2,578,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $298,915,580.48. This represents a 10.74% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 19.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MSM. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $322,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 12.2% during the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,743 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $463,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the third quarter valued at approximately $606,000. Pinnbrook Capital Management LP bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the third quarter valued at approximately $9,860,000. Finally, PEAK6 LLC acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the third quarter valued at approximately $285,000. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

MSC Industrial Direct is a North American distributor of metalworking products and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) supplies. The company serves manufacturers and other industrial customers, offering products such as cutting tools, abrasives, hand tools, safety equipment, fasteners and electrical supplies. In addition to product distribution, MSC provides services designed to help customers manage purchasing and inventory. These include online ordering, inventory-management programs, vending solutions and technical support for metalworking and manufacturing applications.