Two Sigma Investments LP Buys Shares of 19,593 MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Two Sigma Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 19,593 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,463,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MSM. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 412.0% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 425 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 77.0% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 531 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 116.2% in the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 1,230 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 661 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the 4th quarter valued at about $112,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.26% of the company's stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:MSM traded up $0.69 during trading on Friday, reaching $81.20. 364,293 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 635,081. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.93. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.10 and a 12-month high of $90.81. The firm has a market cap of $4.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.38 and a beta of 0.87. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $77.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $79.51.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 6.21%. The business had revenue of $891.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $908.30 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.18 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th were issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 9th. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio is presently 89.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mitchell Jacobson bought 27,642 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $69.77 per share, with a total value of $1,928,582.34. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,951,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $136,171,853.25. This represents a 1.44% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 18.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 6th. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $89.00 price target on MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 4th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $73.00 to $89.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $86.00.

MSC Industrial Direct 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.