Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 23,631 Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. cut its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 376,084 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 23,631 shares during the period. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. owned approximately 0.67% of MSC Industrial Direct worth $34,652,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,950,000. SG Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 867.0% during the 3rd quarter. SG Capital Management LLC now owns 360,988 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $33,261,000 after purchasing an additional 323,659 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG increased its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 110.7% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 479,244 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $44,158,000 after purchasing an additional 251,759 shares during the period. Concentric Capital Strategies LP raised its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 303.6% in the third quarter. Concentric Capital Strategies LP now owns 204,974 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $18,886,000 after buying an additional 154,192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 116.2% in the second quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 269,210 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $22,888,000 after buying an additional 144,666 shares in the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $91.23 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $89.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $88.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.93 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 0.82. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.10 and a 1 year high of $96.99.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 7th. The industrial products company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $965.68 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $962.52 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.37% and a return on equity of 15.73%. The company’s revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 14th were given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 14th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is currently 95.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on MSM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 price objective on MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Zacks Research lowered MSC Industrial Direct from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MSC Industrial Direct has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.50.

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.