MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) Shares Purchased by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 554.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 284,552 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 241,061 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.72% of MSA Safety worth $47,170,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 78.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 182 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in MSA Safety by 120.6% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 225 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in MSA Safety by 97.6% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 81.3% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 330 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank grew its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 520 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of MSA Safety from $175.00 to $161.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $194.20.

MSA Safety Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:MSA traded up $0.18 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $152.78. 45,919 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 176,467. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $149.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $161.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.22 and a beta of 0.97. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 12-month low of $127.86 and a 12-month high of $200.61.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.02. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 28.64% and a net margin of 15.76%. On average, research analysts predict that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MSA Safety news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of MSA Safety stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total transaction of $114,003.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,673 shares of the company's stock, valued at $584,007. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

MSA Safety 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.