WCM Investment Management LLC Sells 14,385 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

WCM Investment Management LLC lessened its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 69.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,375 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 14,385 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $466,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 53.0% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 407 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 6,925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $596,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 54.0% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 476 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $244,000 after buying an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 3,761 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MSM. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Stephens cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.80.

Insider Transactions at MSC Industrial Direct

In other news, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value of $80,163.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $360,199.08. This represents a 18.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 18.30% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $80.58 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.23 and a beta of 0.91. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $72.79 and a 1-year high of $104.76. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $80.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $82.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.93 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The industrial products company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.13. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 6.21%. The company had revenue of $928.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $904.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.22%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.15%.

About MSC Industrial Direct

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.