Tectonic Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Tectonic Advisors LLC increased its position in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 16.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 72,700 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 10,357 shares during the period. Tectonic Advisors LLC owned 0.13% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $5,430,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 442.1% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 309 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 53.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 407 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Matrix Trust Co boosted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 121.1% during the third quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 462 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at MSC Industrial Direct

In other news, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $360,199.08. This trade represents a 18.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total transaction of $4,518,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at $126,761,435.64. This trade represents a 3.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 18.30% of the company's stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

NYSE:MSM traded down $0.51 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $80.21. The stock had a trading volume of 373,907 shares, compared to its average volume of 609,942. The stock has a market cap of $4.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.14 and a beta of 0.91. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $80.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $82.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.93. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $72.79 and a 12-month high of $104.76.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.13. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The firm had revenue of $928.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $904.90 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.24%. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio is currently 81.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stephens downgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $85.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $83.80.

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.