Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 35,792 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. cut its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 978,863 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 35,792 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $82,322,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co bought a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,096,000. Willis Investment Counsel grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 48.6% in the fourth quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 37,870 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,185,000 after acquiring an additional 12,383 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 15.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 288,489 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,581,000 after acquiring an additional 38,088 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 1.2% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,322,432 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $121,842,000 after acquiring an additional 15,765 shares during the period. Finally, Cinctive Capital Management LP bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the third quarter valued at $2,298,000. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $116.46 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $104.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $93.85. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $78.80 and a fifty-two week high of $119.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.31 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.02). MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 16.06%. The company had revenue of $917.77 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $931.69 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.72 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 8th were paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 8th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. MSC Industrial Direct’s payout ratio is currently 93.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Monday, April 27th. KeyCorp upped their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.71.

MSC Industrial Direct Profile

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.