Teacher Retirement System of Texas Acquires 61,734 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 259%, buying 61,734 shares to hold 85,573 shares (about 0.15% of the company) valued at roughly $7.20 million.
• Institutional investors now own 79.26% of MSC, with several funds sharply increasing positions (e.g., SG Capital +867%, UBS +110.7%), indicating substantial institutional accumulation.
• MSC missed quarterly estimates (EPS $0.82 vs. $0.84; revenue $917.8M vs. $931.7M), pays a $0.87 quarterly dividend (3.6% yield, ~93.6% payout ratio), and carries a consensus analyst rating of Hold with an average target of $90.50.

Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 259.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 85,573 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 61,734 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned 0.15% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $7,197,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Capital Management LLC raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 867.0% in the third quarter. SG Capital Management LLC now owns 360,988 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,261,000 after purchasing an additional 323,659 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 110.7% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 479,244 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $44,158,000 after purchasing an additional 251,759 shares in the last quarter. Concentric Capital Strategies LP raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 303.6% during the third quarter. Concentric Capital Strategies LP now owns 204,974 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $18,886,000 after acquiring an additional 154,192 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 116.2% during the second quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 269,210 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $22,888,000 after acquiring an additional 144,666 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 124.2% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 195,176 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $17,984,000 after acquiring an additional 108,116 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. iA Financial set a $95.00 target price on MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Friday, February 6th. KeyCorp reiterated a "sector weight" rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Wall Street Zen cut MSC Industrial Direct from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Friday, February 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $90.50.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $97.95 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $92.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $88.76. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $74.30 and a 1-year high of $98.88. The stock has a market cap of $5.47 billion, a PE ratio of 26.33 and a beta of 0.79.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.02). MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 16.06%. The company had revenue of $917.77 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $931.69 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.72 earnings per share. MSC Industrial Direct's revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 8th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 8th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 93.55%.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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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