MSC Industrial Direct (MSM) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

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. These services include inventory management solutions, kitting and assembly, custom tooling design, and technical support delivered by application specialists. The company’s emphasis on technology enables customers to access real-time inventory data, order tracking and digital procurement tools through its online portal.

Founded in 1941 as the Manhattan Supply Company by Sidney Jacobson, MSC Industrial Direct is headquartered in Melville, New York. Since its initial public offering in 1976, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to maintain more than 100 branch locations throughout the United States and Canada. This extensive geographic footprint allows MSC to serve diverse industries, including automotive, aerospace, energy, government, and small- to medium-sized manufacturers.

MSC Industrial Direct is led by President and Chief Executive Officer Erik Gershwind, who has served in executive roles at the company for over two decades. Under his leadership, MSC has focused on enhancing customer experience through digital innovation, expanded product assortments and operational excellence. The company continues to invest in its distribution network and technology infrastructure to support its mission of delivering unparalleled service and expertise to industrial customers.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $121.39 to $123.16
• 50-Day Range: $106.71 to $127.18
• 52-Week Range: $78.80 to $128.79
• Volume: 94,638 shs
• Average Volume: 733,966 shs
• Market Capitalization: $6.85 billion
• P/E Ratio: 29.64
• Dividend Yield: 2.84%
• Price Target: $123.43
• Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

MSC Industrial Direct scored higher than 71% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 97th out of 172 stocks in the industrials sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 2.5 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Moderate Buy

Consensus Rating

MSC Industrial Direct has received a consensus rating of Moderate Buy. The company's average rating score is 2.75, and is based on 1 strong buy rating, 4 buy ratings, 3 hold ratings, and no sell ratings.

Upside/Downside

The consensus price target for MSC Industrial Direct is close to its current price, suggesting limited near-term upside or downside.

Amount of Analyst Coverage

MSC Industrial Direct has been the subject of 5 research reports in the past 90 days, demonstrating strong analyst interest in this stock.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: 14.99%

Earnings Growth

Earnings for MSC Industrial Direct are expected to grow by 14.99% in the coming year, from $4.47 to $5.14 per share.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of MSC Industrial Direct is 29.33, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 39.91.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of MSC Industrial Direct is 29.33, which means that it is trading at a more expensive P/E ratio than the Industrials sector average P/E ratio of about 26.76.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

MSC Industrial Direct has a P/B Ratio of 4.78. P/B Ratios above 3 indicate that a company could be overvalued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 2.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Bearish

Percentage of Shares Shorted

5.12% of the float of MSC Industrial Direct has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

MSC Industrial Direct has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 2.19, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in MSC Industrial Direct has recently increased by 7.03%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing significantly.

Dividend

• Score: 1.7 / 5
• Dividend Strength: Weak

Dividend Yield

MSC Industrial Direct pays a meaningful dividend of 2.88%, higher than the bottom 25% of all stocks that pay dividends.

Dividend Growth

MSC Industrial Direct has only been increasing its dividend for 3 years.

Dividend Coverage

The dividend payout ratio of MSC Industrial Direct is 84.06%. Payout ratios above 75% are not desirable because they may not be sustainable.

Dividend Sustainability

Based on earnings estimates, MSC Industrial Direct will have a dividend payout ratio of 67.70% next year. This indicates that MSC Industrial Direct will be able to sustain or increase its dividend.

News and Social Media

• Score: 4.8 / 5
• News Sentiment: 1.70

News Sentiment

MSC Industrial Direct has a news sentiment score of 1.70. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a higher news sentiment than the 0.61 average news sentiment score of Industrials companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 4 news articles for MSC Industrial Direct this week, compared to 3 articles on an average week.

Search Interest

4 people have searched for MSM on MarketBeat in the last 30 days. This is an increase of 300% compared to the previous 30 days.

MarketBeat Follows

4 people have added MSC Industrial Direct to their MarketBeat watchlist in the last 30 days.

Company Ownership

• Score: 1.4 / 5
• Insider Trading: N/A

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, MSC Industrial Direct insiders have not sold or bought any company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

19.00% of the stock of MSC Industrial Direct is held by insiders. A high percentage of insider ownership can be a sign of company health.

Percentage Held by Institutions

79.26% of the stock of MSC Industrial Direct is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

Company Calendar

• Last Earnings: 7/01/2026
• Record date for 7/22 Dividend: 7/08/2026
• Ex-Dividend for 7/22 Dividend: 7/08/2026
• Dividend Payable: 7/22/2026
• Today: 7/31/2026
• Fiscal Year End: 8/31/2026

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NYSE
• Sector: Industrials
• Industry: Industrial Services
• Sub-Industry: Trading Companies & Distributors
• Current Symbol: NYSE:MSM
• CIK: 1003078
• Web: www.mscdirect.com
• Phone: (516) 812-2000
• Fax: 516-349-7096
• Employees: 7,284
• Year Founded: 1941

Price Target and Rating

• Average Price Target for MSC Industrial Direct: $123.43
• High Price Target: $155.00
• Low Price Target: $94.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: +0.6%
• Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy
• Rating Score (0-4): 2.75
• Research Coverage: 8 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $4.14
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 29.64
• Forward P/E Ratio: 27.45
• P/E Growth: N/A
• Net Income: $199.33 million
• Net Margins: 5.91%
• Pretax Margin: 7.78%
• Return on Equity: 17.34%
• Return on Assets: 9.79%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 0.06
• Current Ratio: 1.55
• Quick Ratio: 0.72

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $3.77 billion
• Price / Sales: 1.82
• Cash Flow: $5.50 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 22.32
• Book Value: $25.42 per share
• Price / Book: 4.83

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 55,850,000
• Free Float: 45,235,000
• Market Cap: $6.85 billion
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 0.83