Nishan J. Vartanian Sells 11,000 Shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Stock

MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 11,000 shares of MSA Safety stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.29, for a total value of $2,038,190.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 56,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,524,472. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

MSA Safety Stock Performance

NYSE MSA opened at $183.93 on Friday. MSA Safety Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $126.75 and a fifty-two week high of $196.02. The stock has a market cap of $7.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.25 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a fifty day moving average of $187.56 and a 200-day moving average of $173.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.14. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 31.51% and a net margin of 14.81%. The company had revenue of $413.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $428.38 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.36 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. This is a boost from MSA Safety’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. MSA Safety’s payout ratio is 27.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com raised MSA Safety from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. One equities research 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, MSA Safety currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $189.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSA Safety

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AE Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in MSA Safety by 7.0% in the third quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,183 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $344,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in MSA Safety by 1.0% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 57,753 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,105,000 after purchasing an additional 562 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in MSA Safety by 12.1% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 7,213 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,137,000 after purchasing an additional 779 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in MSA Safety in the third quarter valued at $1,538,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in MSA Safety by 4,451.7% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,320 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $208,000 after purchasing an additional 1,291 shares during the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About MSA Safety

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.