AGF Management Ltd. Invests $2.78 Million in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

AGF Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 16,475 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $2,781,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MSA. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of MSA Safety during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in MSA Safety in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of MSA Safety during the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of MSA Safety by 28.2% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the fourth quarter worth about $61,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MSA Safety Trading Up 1.6 %

MSA stock traded up $3.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $192.09. 153,115 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 142,343. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.46 and a beta of 1.01. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 52-week low of $136.43 and a 52-week high of $196.02. The business has a 50 day moving average of $188.34 and a 200-day moving average of $175.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a current ratio of 2.51.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.14. MSA Safety had a net margin of 14.81% and a return on equity of 31.51%. The company had revenue of $413.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $428.38 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.36 earnings per share. MSA Safety's quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is a boost from MSA Safety's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. MSA Safety's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com raised MSA Safety from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, MSA Safety has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $189.50.

Insider Transactions at MSA Safety

In other news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 305 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.50, for a total transaction 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 $650,363. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other MSA Safety news, Director Rebecca B. Roberts sold 1,100 shares of MSA Safety stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.84, for a total transaction of $200,024.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 8,474 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,540,912.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 305 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.50, for a total transaction of $56,577.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,506 shares in the company, valued at $650,363. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 16,504 shares of company stock worth $3,056,181. 6.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.