MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Shares Sold by Auto Owners Insurance Co

Auto Owners Insurance Co lessened its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 92.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,387 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 329,813 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co owned approximately 0.05% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $2,205,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MSM. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 47.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 681 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 6.0% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 5,956 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $463,000 after buying an additional 337 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 4.5% during the first 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 during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the fourth quarter worth $34,735,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 895.0% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 597 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 537 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wolfe Research raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $73.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Loop Capital boosted their target price 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. 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $90.33.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Up 0.3%

NYSE:MSM traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $87.35. The company's stock had a trading volume of 388,920 shares, compared to its average volume of 869,900. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.10 and a 1 year high of $92.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $84.38 and a 200-day moving average of $80.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a PE ratio of 24.67 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm earned $1.33 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th were paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 9th. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 96.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Kimberly Shacklett sold 2,130 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.00, for a total value of $195,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 14,657 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,348,444. This represents a 12.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 18.30% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.