MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) Hits New 1-Year High at $195.63

MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $195.63 and last traded at $195.54, with a volume of 44014 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $190.73.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of MSA Safety from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of MSA Safety from $200.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $189.50.

MSA Safety Stock Up 2.1 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $181.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $169.49. The company has a market capitalization of $7.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 131.54 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The industrial products company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.18. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 32.44% and a net margin of 3.28%. The business had revenue of $495.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $467.52 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.80 earnings per share. MSA Safety's revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 15th were paid a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 14th. MSA Safety's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 129.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSA Safety

In related news, CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 4,099 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.75, for a total value of $761,389.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 67,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,593,850. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Rebecca B. Roberts sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.84, for a total transaction of $200,024.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,474 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,540,912.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 4,099 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.75, for a total transaction of $761,389.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 67,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,593,850. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,504 shares of company stock valued at $1,017,991 in the last ninety days. 6.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSA Safety

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. CWM LLC boosted its stake in MSA Safety by 50.7% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 306 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Moody National Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in MSA Safety in the 1st quarter worth approximately $240,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in MSA Safety in the 4th quarter valued at $142,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd grew its position in shares of MSA Safety by 332.6% during the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 9,492 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,603,000 after purchasing an additional 7,298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,826,135 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $645,966,000 after purchasing an additional 23,526 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% 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.