KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Purchases Shares of 9,100 MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 9,100 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $680,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 25,490 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,195,000 after buying an additional 6,864 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd raised its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 398.1% during the 3rd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 15,860 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,365,000 after acquiring an additional 12,676 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 26,035 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,945,000 after purchasing an additional 2,136 shares during the last quarter. Atom Investors LP bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the third quarter worth $1,751,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 16.1% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 231,146 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $19,892,000 after purchasing an additional 32,013 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MSM. Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $82.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

NYSE:MSM traded down $3.97 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $71.19. The stock had a trading volume of 986,614 shares, compared to its average volume of 621,671. 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 has a 50 day simple moving average of $79.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.99 and a beta of 0.89. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $70.13 and a 52 week high of $95.88.

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

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.78%. MSC Industrial Direct's payout ratio is 81.15%.

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.