MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a Hold consensus on MSC Industrial Direct, with five hold ratings and three buys among eight firms. The average 12-month price target is $123.43.
• MSC Industrial Direct exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $1.43 versus the $1.28 consensus and revenue of $1.05 billion, up 7.8% year over year.
• The stock opened at $122.17, with a $6.82 billion market capitalization; institutional investors own approximately 79.26% of outstanding shares.

MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the eight research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $123.4286.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MSM. DA Davidson upped their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Tuesday. They set a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, September 11th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Monday, July 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $155.00 target price on the stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

Shares of MSM stock opened at $122.17 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.51 and a beta of 0.83. MSC Industrial Direct has a 52 week low of $78.80 and a 52 week high of $130.46. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $122.07 and a 200-day moving average of $110.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.15. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 17.34%. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in 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 buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 101.0% during the 1st quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 400 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted 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 worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 42.4% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 514 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 628 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.26% of the company's stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc NYSE: MSM is a distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) supplies. The company serves industrial and institutional customers by helping them source the products, services and expertise needed to operate and maintain manufacturing facilities, equipment and workplaces.

Its product offerings include cutting tools, abrasives, fasteners, hand and power tools, safety equipment, material-handling products, janitorial supplies, plumbing and electrical items, and other industrial consumables.

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