Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Reduces Holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lessened its stake in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 44.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 92,298 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 72,697 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned approximately 0.17% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $7,183,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 36,445 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,831,000 after buying an additional 3,649 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 31,029 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,410,000 after buying an additional 1,363 shares in the last quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC purchased a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the 1st quarter worth approximately $5,167,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 9,078 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $705,000 after buying an additional 388 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Altrius Capital Management Inc grew its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 56,525 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,390,000 after buying an additional 2,387 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.26% of the company's stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE:MSM traded up $1.37 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $90.75. 1,040,003 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 621,379. The company has a fifty day moving average of $81.59 and a 200 day moving average of $79.68. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.10 and a 12 month high of $91.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.64 and a beta of 0.87.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.05. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 14.99%. The company had revenue of $971.15 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $969.72 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 EPS. The firm's revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.75%. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio is currently 96.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSM has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Industrial Alliance Securities set a $89.00 price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $90.33.

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.