Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 14,287 MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 14,287 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,215,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 6,108.1% during the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 505,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,298,000 after buying an additional 497,810 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 22.9% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,762,248 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $136,867,000 after acquiring an additional 327,833 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1,118.9% during the second quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 346,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,417,000 after acquiring an additional 317,613 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,650,221 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $283,513,000 after acquiring an additional 231,961 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct in the 1st quarter valued at $17,187,000. 79.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on MSM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a report on Friday, October 31st. Zacks Research raised MSC Industrial Direct from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Wolfe Research cut MSC Industrial Direct from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $91.50.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of MSM opened at $85.02 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $88.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $86.33. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.10 and a twelve month high of $94.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of 23.88 and a beta of 0.98.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.06. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 5.29%.The business had revenue of $978.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $964.03 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.03 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. This is an increase from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. MSC Industrial Direct’s payout ratio is presently 97.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Philip Peller purchased 6,666 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $90.14 per share, for a total transaction of $600,873.24. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 9,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $859,665.18. This trade represents a 232.18% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mitchell Jacobson acquired 95,779 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $84.92 per share, for a total transaction of $8,133,552.68. Following the acquisition, the director owned 2,219,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $188,462,531.40. This represents a 4.51% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 188,472 shares of company stock worth $16,008,930. Corporate insiders own 18.30% of the company’s stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

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.