MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Shares Bought by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 27.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 781,705 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 169,168 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 1.99% of MSA Safety worth $138,658,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MSA. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of MSA Safety by 486.0% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 252 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its stake in MSA Safety by 690.5% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 751 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $133,000 after buying an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 985.1% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 803 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $143,000 after buying an additional 729 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new stake in shares of MSA Safety during the 3rd quarter valued at $198,000. Finally, Kowal Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of MSA Safety during the 2nd quarter worth $204,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on MSA shares. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a "hold" rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. B. Riley started coverage on MSA Safety in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $205.00.

MSA Safety Stock Performance

NYSE MSA traded down $4.97 on Tuesday, hitting $168.94. 129,485 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 156,572. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $172.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $178.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.64 billion, a PE ratio of 24.69 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 1-year low of $160.02 and a 1-year high of $200.60.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.05. MSA Safety had a net margin of 15.16% and a return on equity of 29.14%. The company had revenue of $432.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $449.95 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.64 EPS for the current year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. MSA Safety's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.48%.

About MSA Safety

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide.