Jane Street Group LLC Boosts Position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 78.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,671 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,259 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC's holdings in MSA Safety were worth $1,715,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MSA. State Street Corp increased its stake in MSA Safety by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,691,319 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $299,939,000 after purchasing an additional 40,569 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in MSA Safety by 3.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 738,951 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $138,695,000 after acquiring an additional 22,979 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 43.5% during the third quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 440,316 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $78,086,000 after buying an additional 133,373 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in MSA Safety by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 418,237 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $74,170,000 after purchasing an additional 26,835 shares during the period. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP bought a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the second quarter valued at about $60,236,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSA Safety Trading Down 0.5 %

MSA stock traded down $0.83 during trading on Thursday, hitting $168.11. The company had a trading volume of 421,173 shares, compared to its average volume of 160,938. The business has a 50-day moving average of $171.55 and a 200-day moving average of $177.60. 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 one year low of $160.02 and a one year high of $200.60. The stock has a market cap of $6.61 billion, a PE ratio of 24.29 and a beta of 0.99.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.05. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 29.14% and a net margin of 15.16%. The business had revenue of $432.68 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $449.95 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MSA shares. B. Riley began coverage on MSA Safety in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson began coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $200.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, MSA Safety presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $202.50.

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.