Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Sells 96,718 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Key Points

• Arrowstreet Capital reduced its MSC Industrial Direct stake by 81.1% in the first quarter, selling 96,718 shares and retaining 22,588 shares valued at approximately $2.08 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with recent upgrades and price-target increases; MSC Industrial Direct carries a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average target of $123.43.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.43 earnings per share on $1.05 billion in revenue, while maintaining a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share, equivalent to a 2.8% yield.

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership cut its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 81.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,588 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 96,718 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership's holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $2,084,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Willis Investment Counsel grew its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 48.6% in the 4th quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 37,870 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,185,000 after buying an additional 12,383 shares during the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,258,000. Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 420,750 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,385,000 after acquiring an additional 31,260 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management boosted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 1,711.1% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 16,300 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,371,000 after acquiring an additional 15,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 259.0% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 85,573 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,197,000 after purchasing an additional 61,734 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MSM. Zacks Research upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $155.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $123.43.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock opened at $125.62 on Thursday. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $78.80 and a 52 week high of $130.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $120.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $103.59. The company has a market cap of $7.02 billion, a PE ratio of 30.34 and a beta of 0.83.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 17.34%. The firm's revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 8th were paid a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 8th. MSC Industrial Direct's payout ratio is currently 84.06%.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc NYSE: MSM is a leading distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) products serving a broad range of industrial customers across North America. The company offers an extensive portfolio of cutting tools, abrasives, measuring and inspection instruments, fasteners, safety supplies and other essential components used in manufacturing, metalworking and production environments. MSC delivers products through a multi-channel distribution network, including an extensive branch system, e-commerce platform and dedicated sales force.

In addition to its core product offerings, MSC Industrial Direct provides value-added services designed to improve productivity and reduce downtime for its customers.

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