Amalgamated Bank Sells 7,666 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Amalgamated Bank lowered its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 21,005 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 7,666 shares during the quarter. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $1,808,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSM. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 297 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 442.1% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 309 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of MSM stock opened at $89.60 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.01 billion, a PE ratio of 19.56 and a beta of 0.87. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.05 and a 52-week high of $104.76. The business’s fifty day moving average is $82.64 and its 200 day moving average is $83.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.96.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued 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 business had revenue of $952.30 million for 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.64 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. This is a positive change from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.79%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,402,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $126,761,435.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 18.80% of the company’s stock.

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.