MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) CEO Sells $4,518,000.00 in Stock

MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total value of $4,518,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $126,761,435.64. This represents a 3.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

MSM stock opened at $85.45 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.78 billion, a PE ratio of 18.66 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The business has a 50 day moving average of $82.98 and a 200-day moving average of $83.59. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.05 and a 12-month high of $104.76.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $952.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $959.74 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.77% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The business’s revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This is a positive change from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.98%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.49%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 442.1% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 309 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 1,142.3% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 35,300.0% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 354 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on MSM. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Six investment 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, MSC Industrial Direct has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $90.20.

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.