MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Shares Bought by Great Valley Advisor Group Inc.

Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its holdings in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 10.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,926 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 2,541 shares during the quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. owned about 0.07% of MSA Safety worth $4,298,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,883,844 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $643,825,000 after acquiring an additional 22,190 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in MSA Safety by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,999,779 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $331,503,000 after acquiring an additional 173,210 shares during the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC increased its position in MSA Safety by 99.2% in the fourth quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,354,310 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $224,504,000 after buying an additional 674,560 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in MSA Safety by 31.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,131,515 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $187,573,000 after buying an additional 271,264 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in MSA Safety by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 806,438 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $133,718,000 after buying an additional 24,733 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MSA Safety Trading Down 0.7%

MSA stock traded down $1.22 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $162.99. 373,866 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 184,588. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 1-year low of $127.86 and a 1-year high of $200.61. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $151.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $159.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.41 billion, a PE ratio of 22.61 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.09. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 28.64% and a net margin of 15.76%. The firm had revenue of $421.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $402.60 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.61 earnings per share. MSA Safety's revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This is a boost from MSA Safety's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. MSA Safety's payout ratio is 29.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSA Safety

In related news, Chairman Nishan J. Vartanian sold 30,000 shares of MSA Safety stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total transaction of $4,839,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 35,401 shares in the company, valued at $5,710,889.32. The trade was a 45.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on MSA. DA Davidson cut their price target on MSA Safety from $188.00 to $183.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Robert W. Baird set a $166.00 price objective on MSA Safety in a report on Monday, May 5th. B. Riley reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 target price (down from $200.00) on shares of MSA Safety in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded MSA Safety from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $191.80.

About MSA Safety

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide.