Bridgewater Associates LP lessened its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) by 61.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,633 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 7,237 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP's holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $399,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 27,962 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,714,000 after buying an additional 1,294 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 182.0% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 863 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 557 shares during the last quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 14.6% during the second quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,972 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,346,000 after purchasing an additional 2,162 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 10.1% in the second quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 8,222 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $652,000 after purchasing an additional 756 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Butensky & Cohen Financial Security Inc. grew its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Butensky & Cohen Financial Security Inc. now owns 51,376 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,075,000 after purchasing an additional 978 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
In related news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total value of $4,518,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. The trade was a 3.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $80,163.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $360,199.08. This trade represents a 18.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
NYSE:MSM opened at $85.01 on Tuesday. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.05 and a twelve month high of $104.76. The company has a market cap of $4.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.56 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company's 50-day moving average price is $83.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.86.
MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.05). MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 6.77%. The company had revenue of $952.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $959.74 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.64 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.00%. This is a positive change from MSC Industrial Direct's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio is currently 74.24%.
Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. 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 research note on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, MSC Industrial Direct presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $90.20.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on MSM
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.
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