Precision Wealth Strategies LLC Takes Position in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Precision Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 7,531 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MSM. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,352,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,950,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 6.0% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 250,401 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $21,289,000 after purchasing an additional 14,107 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,743,021 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $318,232,000 after buying an additional 92,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 116,908 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,940,000 after buying an additional 3,599 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $87.03 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $86.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $87.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.10 and a twelve month high of $94.31. The company has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a PE ratio of 24.45 and a beta of 0.84.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.06. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 5.29%.The business had revenue of $978.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $964.03 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 14th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 14th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on MSM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Friday, October 31st. Wall Street Zen downgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 9th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $91.50.

Insider Activity

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, Director Mitchell Jacobson bought 95,779 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $84.92 per share, for a total transaction of $8,133,552.68. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,219,295 shares in the company, valued at $188,462,531.40. The trade was a 4.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Philip Peller purchased 6,666 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $90.14 per share, with a total value of $600,873.24. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 9,537 shares in the company, valued at $859,665.18. This represents a 232.18% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have bought 211,342 shares of company stock worth $17,951,965 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 19.00% of the company’s stock.

About MSC Industrial Direct

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc (NYSE: MSM) is a leading distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) products serving a broad range of industrial customers across North America. The company offers an extensive portfolio of cutting tools, abrasives, measuring and inspection instruments, fasteners, safety supplies and other essential components used in manufacturing, metalworking and production environments. MSC delivers products through a multi-channel distribution network, including an extensive branch system, e-commerce platform and dedicated sales force.

In addition to its core product offerings, MSC Industrial Direct provides value-added services designed to improve productivity and reduce downtime for its customers.