AQR Capital Management LLC Has $9.60 Million Position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 30.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 57,918 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 13,682 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.15% of MSA Safety worth $9,601,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSA. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 78.4% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 182 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of MSA Safety by 120.6% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 225 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of MSA Safety by 97.6% during the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 81.3% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 330 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Finally, Hilltop National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 520 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSA Safety Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE:MSA traded up $3.94 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $161.50. 6,910 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 178,681. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.79. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 52-week low of $127.86 and a 52-week high of $200.61. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $149.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $160.85. The company has a market capitalization of $6.35 billion, a PE ratio of 22.32 and a beta of 0.96.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $421.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $402.60 million. MSA Safety had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 28.64%. MSA Safety's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.61 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. This is a boost from MSA Safety's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. MSA Safety's dividend payout ratio is 29.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSA has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised MSA Safety from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Robert W. Baird set a $166.00 price objective on MSA Safety in a research report on Monday, May 5th. DA Davidson decreased their target price on MSA Safety from $188.00 to $183.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, B. Riley reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 price target (down previously from $200.00) on shares of MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $191.80.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total transaction of $114,003.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,673 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $584,007. This represents a 16.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About MSA Safety

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.