MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM Shares Sold by Boston Trust Walden Corp

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden Corp cut its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 11.9% in the first quarter, though it still held 486,508 shares worth about $44.9 million at quarter-end.
• MSC Industrial Direct beat fiscal Q3 estimates, reporting EPS of $1.43 on revenue of about $1.05 billion, with sales up 7.8% year over year as volume trends improved.
• Analysts have turned more bullish: DA Davidson raised its price target to $150 and maintained a buy rating, while the stock’s consensus rating remains Hold with an average target price of $118.17.

Boston Trust Walden Corp decreased its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 11.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 486,508 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 65,704 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned approximately 0.87% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $44,890,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. increased its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 43.0% in the first quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 705,775 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $65,122,000 after buying an additional 212,074 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 9.2% during the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 6,929 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $639,000 after acquiring an additional 583 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 44,360 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,093,000 after acquiring an additional 3,535 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,227,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 15.5% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,655 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $245,000 after acquiring an additional 356 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSM has been the subject of several research reports. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. DA Davidson upped their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings upgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $130.00 price target on MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $118.17.

More MSC Industrial Direct News

Here are the key news stories impacting MSC Industrial Direct this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MSC Industrial beat Wall Street estimates with fiscal Q3 adjusted EPS of $1.43 and revenue of about $1.05 billion, helped by price gains and a return to volume growth, which points to improving operating momentum. MSC Industrial Q3 Earnings Beat on Price Gains & Volume Growth
• Positive Sentiment: DA Davidson raised its price target on MSC Industrial Direct to $150 from $145 and reiterated a buy rating, signaling confidence that shares still have room to run. Benzinga / The Fly report
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded MSC Industrial to Rank #2 (Buy), citing improving earnings expectations and reinforcing the bullish post-earnings sentiment. What Makes MSC Industrial (MSM) a New Buy Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Management and commentary around the earnings call suggest the turnaround is progressing, with improving volume trends, a reset cost structure, and guidance pointing to continued sales gains. MSM Q3 Earnings Call Shows Early Gains in Volume, Cost Reset
• Neutral Sentiment: The stock also appears to be benefiting from broader investor enthusiasm after reaching new highs, as the market continues to price in a stronger industrial recovery. MSC Industrial: A Broadening Industrial Recovery Is Driving Shares To New Highs

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $123.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.55. The business's fifty day moving average price is $110.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.11. The stock has a market cap of $6.87 billion, a PE ratio of 29.72 and a beta of 0.83. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a one year low of $78.80 and a one year high of $127.51.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.15. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.34% and a net margin of 5.91%.The company had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. MSC Industrial Direct's payout ratio is presently 93.55%.

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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