Verition Fund Management LLC Buys Shares of 6,476 MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 6,476 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,148,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in MSA Safety by 198.8% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 245 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 486.0% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 252 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 985.1% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 803 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $143,000 after acquiring an additional 729 shares in the last quarter. Kowal Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSA Safety during the second quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in MSA Safety during the second quarter worth approximately $206,000. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, B. Riley began coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $200.00 price target on the stock.

MSA Safety Price Performance

Shares of MSA traded up $2.60 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $176.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 250,678 shares, compared to its average volume of 167,044. MSA Safety Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $160.02 and a fifty-two week high of $200.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.44 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $171.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $178.44. 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 (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $432.68 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $449.95 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. MSA Safety's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.48%.

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.