Zacks Research Downgrades MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) to Hold

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on MSM. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 9th. Wolfe Research lowered MSC Industrial Direct from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $91.50.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock opened at $82.41 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $87.43 and a 200-day moving average of $86.92. MSC Industrial Direct has a 52-week low of $68.10 and a 52-week high of $94.31. The stock has a market cap of $4.60 billion, a PE ratio of 23.15 and a beta of 0.84.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $978.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $964.03 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 15.21%. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, Director Philip Peller acquired 6,666 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $90.14 per share, for a total transaction of $600,873.24. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,537 shares in the company, valued at $859,665.18. This represents a 232.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mitchell Jacobson acquired 95,779 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $84.92 per share, for a total transaction of $8,133,552.68. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 2,219,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $188,462,531.40. This represents a 4.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have bought a total of 211,342 shares of company stock valued at $17,951,965 in the last three months. 18.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MSM. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 257.4% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 71.7% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 503 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 130.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 576 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 52.2% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 595 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes metalworking and maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) products and services in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company's MRO products include cutting tools, measuring instruments, tooling components, metalworking products, fasteners, flat stock products, raw materials, abrasives, machinery hand and power tools, safety and janitorial supplies, plumbing supplies, materials handling products, power transmission components, and electrical supplies.