MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Shares Bought by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 204.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,935 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,673 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 1st quarter valued at about $16,571,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 68.5% during the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 157,252 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $15,458,000 after buying an additional 63,955 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 85.1% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,733,228 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $216,772,000 after acquiring an additional 1,256,706 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the second quarter valued at approximately $3,101,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 892.9% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 695 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 625 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSC Industrial Direct

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value of $80,163.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $360,199.08. The trade was a 18.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,402,849 shares of the company's stock, valued at $126,761,435.64. This trade represents a 3.44 % 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 Price Performance

Shares of MSM traded up $1.28 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $85.41. 472,274 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 723,416. The company's 50-day moving average price is $83.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.23. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.05 and a 52-week high of $104.76. The company has a market cap of $4.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.66 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

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 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $952.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $959.74 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 6.77%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.64 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. This is a boost from MSC Industrial Direct's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio is presently 74.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MSM shares. 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. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $90.20.

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.