AIA Group Ltd Makes New Investment in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

AIA Group Ltd purchased a new position in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 11,583 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,956,000.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of MSA Safety by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. FMR LLC now owns 588 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 28.2% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 336 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 22,096 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,950,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 16,178 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,550,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its stake in MSA Safety by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 25,184 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,970,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded MSA Safety from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. One 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, MSA Safety has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $189.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 4,099 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.75, for a total transaction of $761,389.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 67,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,593,850. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other MSA Safety news, CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 4,099 shares of MSA Safety stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.75, for a total value of $761,389.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 67,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,593,850. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 305 shares of MSA Safety stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.50, for a total value of $56,577.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,506 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $650,363. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,504 shares of company stock worth $1,017,991 in the last quarter. 6.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

MSA Safety Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of MSA traded down $0.17 on Friday, reaching $185.38. The stock had a trading volume of 91,136 shares, compared to its average volume of 138,732. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 128.08 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.36. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $185.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $171.38. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 12-month low of $122.57 and a 12-month high of $196.02.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The industrial products company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $495.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $467.52 million. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 32.44% and a net margin of 3.28%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.80 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.73 EPS for the current year.

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.