Alberta Investment Management Corp Invests $10.49 Million in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

Alberta Investment Management Corp acquired a new position in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 135,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,485,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 207.8% in the 1st quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV now owns 397 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 895.0% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 597 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 537 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 47.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 681 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, SVP Kimberly Shacklett sold 2,130 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.00, for a total transaction of $195,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 14,657 shares in the company, valued at $1,348,444. This trade represents a 12.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 18.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

MSC Industrial Direct Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $85.06 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $4.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.03 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.92. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a one year low of $68.10 and a one year high of $92.68. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $85.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.90.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.05. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 14.99% and a net margin of 5.30%. The firm had revenue of $971.15 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $969.72 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.33 EPS. MSC Industrial Direct’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th were paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 9th. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 96.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Loop Capital raised their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $89.00 target price on MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Stephens raised their target price on MSC Industrial Direct from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wolfe Research upgraded MSC Industrial Direct to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, April 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded MSC Industrial Direct from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $73.00 to $89.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.33.

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.