MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Shares Sold by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. trimmed its position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,931 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 186 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in MSA Safety were worth $833,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of MSA Safety by 28.2% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 336 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its position in shares of MSA Safety by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 16,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,550,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its position in shares of MSA Safety by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 25,184 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,970,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its position in shares of MSA Safety by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 6,136 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $967,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of MSA Safety by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,183 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $344,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSA Safety Stock Performance

NYSE MSA opened at $188.71 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $186.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $172.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 130.15 and a beta of 1.01. MSA Safety Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $122.57 and a fifty-two week high of $196.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.36.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The industrial products company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $495.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $467.52 million. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 32.44% and a net margin of 3.28%. The company’s revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.80 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 4,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.75, for a total transaction of $761,389.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 67,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,593,850. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 4,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.75, for a total transaction of $761,389.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 67,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,593,850. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.50, for a total value of $56,577.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,506 shares in the company, valued at $650,363. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,504 shares of company stock worth $1,017,991 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised MSA Safety from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $189.50.

MSA Safety Profile

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide.