Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. Cuts Position in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. reduced its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 64.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,636 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 112,074 shares during the period. MSC Industrial Direct comprises 0.6% of Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. owned about 0.11% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $5,268,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MSM. Altrius Capital Management Inc raised its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 58,861 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,950,000 after acquiring an additional 1,405 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 25,345 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,132,000 after purchasing an additional 871 shares in the last quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 4th quarter worth about $224,000. AMG National Trust Bank acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the 4th quarter worth about $1,258,000. Finally, Certuity LLC increased its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 57.8% during the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 3,581 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 1,312 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.26% of the company's stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

NYSE MSM opened at $102.98 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.73. The stock's fifty day moving average is $93.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.68 and a beta of 0.83. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $74.30 and a fifty-two week high of $105.09.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.02). MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 16.06% and a net margin of 5.42%.The business had revenue of $917.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $931.69 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. MSC Industrial Direct's revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 8th were issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 8th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 93.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MSM. KeyCorp upgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $117.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Friday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. Finally, iA Financial set a $95.00 price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $94.29.

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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