MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) Price Target Cut to $140.00 by Analysts at KeyCorp

Key Points

• KeyCorp lowered MSC Industrial Direct’s price target to $140 from $145 while maintaining an “overweight” rating, implying approximately 24.6% upside from the reported share price.
• MSC Industrial exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted EPS of $1.45 versus a $1.41 consensus estimate and revenue of $1.08 billion, up 10.3% year over year.
• Despite the strong sales and adjusted earnings results, concerns about inflationary headwinds, margin pressure, and weaker reported EPS weighed on investor sentiment. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average target of $128.44.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by investment analysts at KeyCorp from $145.00 to $140.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the industrial products company's stock. KeyCorp's price target suggests a potential upside of 24.58% from the stock's current price.

MSM has been the topic of a number of other reports. Zacks Research downgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised MSC Industrial Direct from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $135.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Monday, July 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. Barclays initiated coverage on MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $152.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. They set a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $128.44.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

NYSE MSM opened at $112.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.72. MSC Industrial Direct has a 1-year low of $78.80 and a 1-year high of $133.95. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $123.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $116.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.28 billion, a PE ratio of 27.14 and a beta of 0.82.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.07 billion. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.34% and a net margin of 5.91%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.09 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct will post 4.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MSM. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 89.9% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 245 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Pension & Wealth Management Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. First Horizon Corp increased its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 101.0% in the 1st quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 400 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 60.3% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 319 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter valued at about $75,000. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting MSC Industrial Direct

Here are the key news stories impacting MSC Industrial Direct this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Fiscal fourth-quarter net sales rose 10.3% year over year to $1.079 billion, surpassing Wall Street expectations of approximately $1.07 billion. Adjusted diluted EPS was $1.45, ahead of estimates ranging from $1.39 to $1.41. MSC Industrial Supply Co. Reports Fiscal 2026 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management expects sales growth to continue into the first quarter, supporting the view that demand for MSC Industrial’s industrial and manufacturing products remains resilient. MSC Industrial Posts Lower Profit In Q4, Sees Sales Growth In Q1
• Neutral Sentiment: Although adjusted earnings improved from $1.09 per share a year earlier, reported diluted EPS was $0.85, compared with $1.01 in the prior-year quarter. This difference reflects the effect of adjustments and makes the headline earnings improvement less favorable than the adjusted figure suggests. MSC Industrial Direct Earnings Report
• Negative Sentiment: Operating income was $72.8 million, or $117.8 million on an adjusted basis, while the reported operating margin was 6.7%. Investors appear focused on margin quality and the gap between reported and adjusted results rather than the sales beat alone. MSC Industrial Sinks Despite Record Sales as CEO Flags Inflationary Headwinds
• Negative Sentiment: CEO remarks about “inflationary headwinds” heightened concerns that higher costs could pressure margins and future earnings. That warning likely outweighed the quarterly beats, contributing to the stock’s decline. MSC Industrial Sinks Despite Record Sales as CEO Flags Inflationary Headwinds

About MSC Industrial Direct

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc is a distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) supplies. The company serves industrial and institutional customers with products used in machining, manufacturing, facility maintenance and workplace safety.

Its offerings include cutting tools, abrasives, tooling and workholding equipment, machinery, safety products, material-handling supplies, janitorial and facility-maintenance products, and other industrial consumables. MSC also provides technical support, inventory-management programs, vending and other supply-chain services designed to help customers manage procurement and production-related needs.

Founded in 1941, MSC serves customers primarily across the United States and Canada through sales representatives, customer service teams, catalogs, distribution operations and digital commerce platforms.

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