UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Sells 137,179 Shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC reduced its stake in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 16.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 675,918 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 137,179 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 1.72% of MSA Safety worth $112,047,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 275.1% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 89,929 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $14,908,000 after acquiring an additional 65,953 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 13,464 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,232,000 after acquiring an additional 1,932 shares in the last quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the fourth quarter worth about $360,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG bought a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the fourth quarter worth about $1,149,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 201,494 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $33,402,000 after acquiring an additional 33,554 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $166.00 price target on MSA Safety in a report on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded MSA Safety from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 10th. B. Riley reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price objective (down from $200.00) on shares of MSA Safety in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their price objective on MSA Safety from $188.00 to $183.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $191.80.

MSA Safety Stock Up 1.0%

NYSE MSA traded up $1.62 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $163.95. 77,168 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 197,932. The business's 50-day moving average is $150.81 and its 200-day moving average is $160.18. MSA Safety Incorporated has a twelve month low of $127.86 and a twelve month high of $200.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.74 and a beta of 0.96.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.09. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 28.64% and a net margin of 15.76%. The firm had revenue of $421.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $402.60 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.61 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current year.

MSA Safety Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.29%. This is a boost from MSA Safety's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. MSA Safety's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.24%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Nishan J. Vartanian sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total transaction of $4,839,600.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 35,401 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,710,889.32. This trade represents a 45.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

MSA Safety Company Profile

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide.