Trust Co. of Vermont Invests $1.04 Million in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 8,733 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,039,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSM. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 12,181.8% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 3,254,670 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $273,718,000 after acquiring an additional 3,228,170 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,796,316 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $151,070,000 after purchasing an additional 187,440 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 20.9% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,773,133 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $163,607,000 after purchasing an additional 306,436 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 2.1% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,764,875 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $162,605,000 after purchasing an additional 36,626 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1.1% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,357,419 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $125,240,000 after purchasing an additional 14,484 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

NYSE:MSM opened at $122.48 on Wednesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $6.84 billion, a PE ratio of 29.58 and a beta of 0.83. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $78.80 and a 12 month high of $130.46. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $121.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $105.94.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.15. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 17.34%. The company had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 8th were issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 8th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 84.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on MSM shares. Zacks Research raised MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $130.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.43.

MSC Industrial Direct Company 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.