Verity & Verity LLC Has $3.68 Million Position in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Verity & Verity LLC raised its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM – Get Rating) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 44,990 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,638 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $3,676,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSM. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 34.8% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 5,480,861 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $467,024,000 after buying an additional 1,414,485 shares during the last quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter worth about $19,415,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter worth about $16,504,000. Balyasny Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter worth about $14,719,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter worth about $14,054,000. 73.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Down 3.0 %

Shares of MSM opened at $78.24 on Friday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $71.32 and a 52 week high of $90.04. The firm has a market cap of $4.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $83.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $81.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 2.14.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 5th. The industrial products company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.02. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 9.34% and a return on equity of 26.97%. The business had revenue of $957.75 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $948.17 million. On average, analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $92.00 to $95.00 in a research note on Friday, January 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $93.00.

Insider Activity at MSC Industrial Direct

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, EVP Douglas E. Jones sold 23,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.92, for a total value of $2,150,706.56. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $523,604.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other MSC Industrial Direct news, EVP Douglas E. Jones sold 23,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.92, for a total value of $2,150,706.56. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $523,604.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Douglas E. Jones sold 885 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.00, for a total transaction of $77,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $434,544. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 28.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

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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.