VELA Investment Management LLC Purchases New Shares in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Key Points

• VELA Investment Management acquired 31,854 shares of MSC Industrial Direct worth approximately $3.79 million, giving it a 0.06% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 79.26% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.43; several firms recently raised their targets or initiated buy ratings.
• MSC Industrial Direct exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.43 in earnings per share and $1.05 billion in revenue, while revenue increased 7.8% year over year. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.87, yielding about 2.9% annually.

VELA Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 31,854 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $3,789,000. VELA Investment Management LLC owned 0.06% of MSC Industrial Direct as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MSM. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 46,990 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,650,000 after acquiring an additional 2,164 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the first quarter worth approximately $455,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 79.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 750 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct during the first quarter worth $229,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the first quarter valued at $816,000. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MSM. Jefferies Financial Group set a $130.00 price objective on MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Rothschild & Co Redburn started coverage on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $155.00 price target for the company. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised MSC Industrial Direct from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $123.43.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $121.38 on Tuesday. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $78.80 and a 12 month high of $130.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.32 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company's fifty day moving average price is $122.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $108.63.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.15. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.34% and a net margin of 5.91%.The business had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 8th were paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. MSC Industrial Direct's payout ratio is 84.06%.

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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