Perpetual Ltd Cuts Stake in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Perpetual Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 15.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,462 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 7,468 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd owned approximately 0.10% of MSA Safety worth $6,542,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp grew 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 acquiring an additional 40,569 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 27.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 781,705 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $138,658,000 after purchasing an additional 169,168 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 43.5% during the 3rd quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 440,316 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $78,086,000 after purchasing an additional 133,373 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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, Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in MSA Safety by 0.5% during the second quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 239,117 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $44,880,000 after buying an additional 1,176 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSA Safety Price Performance

MSA Safety stock traded down $0.75 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $165.40. The company had a trading volume of 84,129 shares, compared to its average volume of 131,310. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 1.56. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 12-month low of $153.79 and a 12-month high of $200.60. The company has a market capitalization of $6.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.90 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $169.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $174.87.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $432.68 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $449.95 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.78 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

MSA Safety Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. MSA Safety's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

MSA Safety Company 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.