MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $123.4286.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MSM shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $130.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd.

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of MSM opened at $118.78 on Tuesday. MSC Industrial Direct has a twelve month low of $78.80 and a twelve month high of $130.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $6.63 billion, a PE ratio of 28.69 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $122.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $107.74.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 17.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th were given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 8th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 84.06%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 46,990 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,650,000 after purchasing an additional 2,164 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the first quarter worth about $455,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 79.9% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 1st quarter worth approximately $229,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 1st quarter worth approximately $816,000. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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.