MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Position Raised by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 7.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,567,038 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 113,878 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 2.80% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $134,859,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 85.1% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,733,228 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $216,772,000 after purchasing an additional 1,256,706 shares during the period. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the 1st quarter valued at about $16,571,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 804.5% during the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 173,653 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $13,772,000 after acquiring an additional 154,454 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1,715.2% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 143,400 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $11,373,000 after acquiring an additional 135,500 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 458.4% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 119,700 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $9,493,000 after acquiring an additional 98,265 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on MSM. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $90.20.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total value of $4,518,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares of the company's stock, valued at $126,761,435.64. This represents a 3.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $80,163.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $360,199.08. This represents a 18.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 18.80% of the company's stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Up 1.9 %

NYSE MSM traded up $1.61 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $87.02. The company had a trading volume of 594,461 shares, compared to its average volume of 580,527. The firm's 50 day moving average is $83.50 and its 200 day moving average is $83.11. The company has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.65 and a beta of 0.87. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.05 and a fifty-two week high of $104.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 0.90.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.05). MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.77% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The firm had revenue of $952.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $959.74 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.64 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be given a $0.85 dividend. This is a boost from MSC Industrial Direct's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.91%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio is presently 74.24%.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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.