Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Sells 72,697 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC reduced its stake in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 44.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 92,298 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 72,697 shares during the quarter. 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.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 11.1% during 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 during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 31,029 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,363 shares during the last quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct during the first quarter valued at about $5,167,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 4.5% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 9,078 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $705,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Altrius Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 4.4% in the first quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 56,525 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,390,000 after purchasing an additional 2,387 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MSM shares. Wolfe Research raised MSC Industrial Direct to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $73.00 to $89.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Loop Capital increased their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Industrial Alliance Securities set a $89.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $90.33.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM traded up $0.36 during trading on Friday, hitting $89.97. 706,491 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 618,461. The company has a market capitalization of $5.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.42 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.92. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $68.10 and a 1-year high of $90.85. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $81.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.51.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $971.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $969.72 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 14.99%. The firm's revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.33 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 9th. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio is 96.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mitchell Jacobson acquired 27,642 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $69.77 per share, for a total transaction of $1,928,582.34. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 1,951,725 shares of the company's stock, valued at $136,171,853.25. The trade was a 1.44% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 18.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

MSC Industrial Direct Profile

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.