HighTower Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,329 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 110 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in MSA Safety were worth $1,049,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in MSA Safety by 78.4% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 182 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 120.6% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 225 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 97.6% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in MSA Safety by 81.3% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Finally, Hilltop National Bank increased its holdings in MSA Safety by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 520 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $86,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total transaction of $114,003.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,673 shares in the company, valued at $584,007. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 6.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

MSA Safety Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of MSA stock opened at $152.85 on Thursday. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 1 year low of $148.23 and a 1 year high of $200.61. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $159.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $167.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.20 and a beta of 0.99.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.02. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 28.64% and a net margin of 15.76%. As a group, analysts anticipate that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson assumed coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 target price for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on MSA Safety from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, MSA Safety currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $197.00.

MSA Safety Profile

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide.