MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Shares Sold by Comerica Bank

Comerica Bank lessened its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 35.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,679 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 9,681 shares during the period. Comerica Bank's holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $1,320,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MSM. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 412.0% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 425 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 54.0% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 476 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 77.0% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 531 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MSM shares. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 6th. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $82.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 0.1%

MSC Industrial Direct stock traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $79.10. 379,722 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 638,875. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.93 and a quick ratio of 0.91. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.10 and a 52-week high of $94.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.88 and a beta of 0.90. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $76.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $79.93.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.04. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The business had revenue of $891.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $908.30 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.18 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th were given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.30%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 9th. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSC Industrial Direct

In other news, Director Mitchell Jacobson purchased 27,642 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $69.77 per share, with a total value of $1,928,582.34. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,951,725 shares in the company, valued at $136,171,853.25. The trade was a 1.44% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 18.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.