MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Stake Raised by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM – Get Rating) by 53.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,719 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,543 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $1,530,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MSM. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 465.4% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 19,687 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,678,000 after acquiring an additional 16,205 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 3.4% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 13,636 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,162,000 after acquiring an additional 447 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 115.7% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,514 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $128,000 after acquiring an additional 812 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 14.1% during the first quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 24,042 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,049,000 after acquiring an additional 2,974 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 34.2% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 30,438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,594,000 after acquiring an additional 7,749 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.89% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Down 1.7 %

NYSE MSM opened at $92.40 on Wednesday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $71.32 and a twelve month high of $94.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 2.04. The stock has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.22 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $87.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $84.81.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 4th. The industrial products company reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.10. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 9.34% and a return on equity of 26.66%. The firm had revenue of $961.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $934.76 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.29 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 6.28 EPS for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 11th were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 10th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSC Industrial Direct

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, SVP Kimberly Shacklett sold 6,442 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.99, for a total transaction of $586,157.58. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 10,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $975,048.84. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 28.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 5th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 5th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $95.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 5th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.67.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc engages in the distribution of metalworking and maintenance, repair, and operations products and services. Its products include cutting tools, measuring instruments, tooling components, metalworking, fasteners, flat stock, raw materials, abrasives, machinery hand and power tools, safety and janitorial supplies, plumbing supplies, materials handling products, power transmission components, and electrical supplies.