ARGA Investment Management LP Acquires New Holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

ARGA Investment Management LP bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 17,710 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,634,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Willis Investment Counsel lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 48.6% during the fourth quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 37,870 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,185,000 after buying an additional 12,383 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 15.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 288,489 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,581,000 after acquiring an additional 38,088 shares during the last quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the third quarter worth $2,298,000. AMG National Trust Bank bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the fourth quarter worth $1,258,000. Finally, Concentric Capital Strategies LP raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 303.6% during the 3rd quarter. Concentric Capital Strategies LP now owns 204,974 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $18,886,000 after purchasing an additional 154,192 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $130.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Zacks Research raised MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $118.17.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of MSM stock opened at $122.81 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $113.16 and a 200-day moving average of $98.50. The stock has a market cap of $6.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.67 and a beta of 0.83. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $78.80 and a 52-week high of $127.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.55.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 17.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.08 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is presently 84.06%.

About MSC Industrial Direct

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc (NYSE: MSM) is a leading distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) products serving a broad range of industrial customers across North America. The company offers an extensive portfolio of cutting tools, abrasives, measuring and inspection instruments, fasteners, safety supplies and other essential components used in manufacturing, metalworking and production environments. MSC delivers products through a multi-channel distribution network, including an extensive branch system, e-commerce platform and dedicated sales force.

In addition to its core product offerings, MSC Industrial Direct provides value-added services designed to improve productivity and reduce downtime for its customers.