MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Shares Bought by Martingale Asset Management L P

Martingale Asset Management L P grew its stake in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 20.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,243 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,733 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P owned approximately 0.09% of MSA Safety worth $5,676,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in MSA Safety by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,883,844 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $643,825,000 after buying an additional 22,190 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in MSA Safety by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,999,779 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $331,503,000 after purchasing an additional 173,210 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in MSA Safety by 2.5% during the third 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. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in MSA Safety by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 806,438 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $133,718,000 after purchasing an additional 24,733 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in MSA Safety by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 767,634 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $127,251,000 after purchasing an additional 17,052 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on MSA shares. DA Davidson assumed coverage on MSA Safety in a report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of MSA Safety from $175.00 to $161.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $194.20.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total value of $114,003.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,673 shares in the company, valued at approximately $584,007. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 6.20% of the company's stock.

MSA Safety Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of MSA traded down $1.07 on Tuesday, hitting $143.58. 40,954 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 170,681. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 1 year low of $127.86 and a 1 year high of $200.61. The stock's 50 day moving average is $153.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $163.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.91 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.02. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 28.64% and a net margin of 15.76%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current year.

MSA Safety Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. MSA Safety's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.29%.

MSA Safety Profile

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.