Man Group plc Has $2.67 Million Position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Man Group plc trimmed its holdings in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 85.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,124 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 96,538 shares during the period. Man Group plc's holdings in MSA Safety were worth $2,673,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSA. Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the 4th quarter valued at $865,000. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP acquired a new position in MSA Safety during the fourth quarter worth $215,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in MSA Safety by 241.6% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 148,212 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $24,569,000 after buying an additional 104,829 shares in the last quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of MSA Safety by 298.1% in the fourth quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 28,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,642,000 after buying an additional 20,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in shares of MSA Safety by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 334,893 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $55,514,000 after buying an additional 23,931 shares during the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised MSA Safety from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 10th. Robert W. Baird set a $166.00 price target on MSA Safety in a report on Monday, May 5th. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 price objective (down from $200.00) on shares of MSA Safety in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their price objective on shares of MSA Safety from $188.00 to $183.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $191.80.

MSA Safety Stock Performance

Shares of MSA traded down $0.63 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $161.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 41,529 shares, compared to its average volume of 182,231. The stock's 50-day moving average is $150.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $160.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.36 billion, a PE ratio of 22.44 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.79. MSA Safety Incorporated has a one year low of $127.86 and a one year high of $200.61.

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

MSA Safety Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This is a boost from MSA Safety's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. MSA Safety's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

MSA Safety Company Profile

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.