New York State Common Retirement Fund Has $6.45 Million Holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 42.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 83,018 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 61,275 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned 0.15% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $6,448,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 47.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 681 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 6.0% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 5,956 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $463,000 after buying an additional 337 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 4.5% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 9,078 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $705,000 after buying an additional 388 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,735,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 537 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Loop Capital increased their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $89.00 price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $73.00 to $89.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $90.33.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock opened at $87.34 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $83.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $80.48. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.10 and a 12-month high of $92.68. The company has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.67 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.05. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 14.99% and a net margin of 5.30%. The business had revenue of $971.15 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $969.72 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.33 earnings per share. MSC Industrial Direct's revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.89%. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 96.05%.

Insider Transactions at MSC Industrial Direct

In related news, SVP Kimberly Shacklett sold 2,130 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.00, for a total transaction of $195,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 14,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,348,444. This represents a 12.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 18.30% of the company's stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

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.

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