Bank of Montreal Can Sells 6,628 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Bank of Montreal Can reduced its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 21.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,621 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 6,628 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can's holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $1,764,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 412.0% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 425 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 54.0% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 476 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 77.0% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 531 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.26% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MSM shares. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $82.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of MSM opened at $75.93 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $4.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.12 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $78.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.67. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $68.10 and a 1-year high of $94.31.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $891.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $908.30 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. MSC Industrial Direct's quarterly revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.48%. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio is currently 89.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mitchell Jacobson acquired 27,642 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $69.77 per share, for a total transaction of $1,928,582.34. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,951,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $136,171,853.25. This trade represents a 1.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 18.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes metalworking and maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) products and services in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company's MRO products include cutting tools, measuring instruments, tooling components, metalworking products, fasteners, flat stock products, raw materials, abrasives, machinery hand and power tools, safety and janitorial supplies, plumbing supplies, materials handling products, power transmission components, and electrical supplies.

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