Principal Securities Inc. Reduces Stock Position in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Principal Securities Inc. lowered its stake in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 30.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 798 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 350 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $60,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSM. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 7.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,567,038 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $134,859,000 after acquiring an additional 113,878 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 918,235 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $79,023,000 after purchasing an additional 91,369 shares during the period. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 5.8% in the third quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 641,779 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,232,000 after purchasing an additional 35,077 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 618,103 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $46,166,000 after buying an additional 105,265 shares during the period. Finally, Seizert Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 3.3% during the third quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 361,783 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,135,000 after buying an additional 11,585 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 1.6 %

MSM opened at $79.44 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $80.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.75. The company has a market capitalization of $4.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.96 and a beta of 0.91. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $72.79 and a 52 week high of $104.76.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.13. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 6.21%. The firm had revenue of $928.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $904.90 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 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, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.28%. MSC Industrial Direct’s payout ratio is presently 81.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens lowered MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.80.

About MSC Industrial Direct

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes metalworking and maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) products and services in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company's MRO products include cutting tools, measuring instruments, tooling components, metalworking products, fasteners, flat stock products, raw materials, abrasives, machinery hand and power tools, safety and janitorial supplies, plumbing supplies, materials handling products, power transmission components, and electrical supplies.