Advisors Asset Management Inc. Increases Position in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 8,289.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,031 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 16,828 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $1,466,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MSM. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 1,142.3% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 323 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 442.1% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 309 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 35,300.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 354 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at MSC Industrial Direct

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was 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 directly owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. This trade represents a 3.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value of $80,163.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $360,199.08. This represents a 18.20 % 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 Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of MSM stock traded down $1.33 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $85.69. 724,606 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 581,202. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.05 and a fifty-two week high of $104.76. The firm has a market cap of $4.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.70 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.96. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $83.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.08.

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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $952.30 million for 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 revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.64 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.65 EPS for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This is an increase from MSC Industrial Direct's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.97%. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.24%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $90.20.

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.