Auto Owners Insurance Co Acquires 317,613 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 1,118.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 346,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 317,613 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co owned about 0.62% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $29,417,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clearstead Trust LLC bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV grew its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 207.8% during the 1st quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV now owns 397 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 47.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 681 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 79.9% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Loop Capital raised their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Zacks Research cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $91.50.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Down 1.8%

MSM stock opened at $84.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $89.76 and a 200 day moving average of $85.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.69 billion, a PE ratio of 23.68 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.10 and a 52 week high of $94.31.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $978.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $964.03 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 15.21%. MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.03 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be paid a $0.87 dividend. This is a boost from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 95.51%.

MSC Industrial Direct Company 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.