Wolfe Research Begins Coverage on MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM)

Equities researchers at Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set an "outperform" rating and a $95.00 price target on the industrial products company's stock. Wolfe Research's target price indicates a potential upside of 16.71% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on MSM. 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 report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Stephens downgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.80.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of MSM traded up $1.35 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $81.40. The stock had a trading volume of 678,087 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,090,474. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $81.94 and a 200 day moving average of $81.88. The company has a market cap of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.43 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. MSC Industrial Direct has a 52 week low of $72.79 and a 52 week high of $104.76.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $928.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $904.90 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 6.21%. The company's revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct will post 3.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at MSC Industrial Direct

In related news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $80,163.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at $360,199.08. This trade represents a 18.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 8,289.7% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,031 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,466,000 after acquiring an additional 16,828 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 36.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 25,490 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,195,000 after acquiring an additional 6,864 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 36.4% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 23,114 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,989,000 after acquiring an additional 6,172 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 398.1% during the third quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 15,860 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,365,000 after acquiring an additional 12,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 892.9% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 695 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 625 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.