Legal & General Group Plc Sells 4,614 Shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Legal & General Group Plc lessened its stake in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 75,023 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 4,614 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.19% of MSA Safety worth $12,437,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in MSA Safety during the 4th quarter valued at $72,693,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,689,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MSA Safety during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,894,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in MSA Safety by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,999,779 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $331,503,000 after purchasing an additional 173,210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in MSA Safety by 34.2% in the 4th quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 590,718 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $97,923,000 after purchasing an additional 150,402 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on MSA Safety from $175.00 to $161.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $194.20.

Insider Transactions at MSA Safety

In related news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total value of $114,003.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,673 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $584,007. This trade represents a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

MSA Safety Stock Performance

Shares of MSA stock traded up $2.80 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $145.17. 199,291 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 174,031. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 52-week low of $127.86 and a 52-week high of $200.61. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $150.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $162.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.13 and a beta of 0.97.

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

About MSA Safety

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.