Atom Investors LP Invests $1.75 Million in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Atom Investors LP bought a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 20,349 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,751,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MSM. Paloma Partners Management Co purchased a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter valued at about $224,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $367,000. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 26.9% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 25,234 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,172,000 after acquiring an additional 5,346 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 16.1% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 231,146 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $19,892,000 after purchasing an additional 32,013 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 29.8% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 11,820 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,017,000 after purchasing an additional 2,717 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total transaction of $4,518,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. This trade represents a 3.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $80,163.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $360,199.08. This trade represents a 18.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 18.80% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE MSM opened at $85.01 on Tuesday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.05 and a 12 month high of $104.76. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $83.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.86. The stock has a market cap of $4.75 billion, a PE ratio of 18.56 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $952.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $959.74 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.77% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.64 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. This is an increase from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.00%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on MSM. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $90.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Profile

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.