MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) Price Target Lowered to $73.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) had its price target trimmed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $87.00 to $73.00 in a report published on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

MSM has been the subject of several other reports. Loop Capital cut their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Robert W. Baird boosted 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 assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock traded up $0.88 on Friday, reaching $78.67. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,166,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 570,063. MSC Industrial Direct has a 52-week low of $75.05 and a 52-week high of $104.76. The company has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.27 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $82.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $84.36.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.05). MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 21.31% and a net margin of 7.44%. 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 company posted $1.64 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that MSC Industrial Direct will post 4.84 EPS for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This is an increase from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.32%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.47%.

Institutional Trading of MSC Industrial Direct

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1,142.3% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 442.1% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 309 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in MSC Industrial Direct by 35,300.0% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 354 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.