Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Acquires 2,690 Shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc raised its holdings in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 21.2% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 15,357 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,690 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in MSA Safety were worth $2,882,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 198.8% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake in MSA Safety by 50.7% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 306 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new position in MSA Safety in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $142,000. Allegheny Financial Group LTD bought a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the 1st quarter worth approximately $203,000. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of MSA Safety during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $206,000. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at MSA Safety

In other news, CEO Nishan J. Vartanian sold 3,945 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.00, for a total transaction of $745,605.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 31,953 shares in the company, valued at $6,039,117. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 6.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

MSA Safety Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE MSA opened at $176.90 on Friday. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 1-year low of $147.35 and a 1-year high of $200.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.45, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $180.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $184.37. The company has a market capitalization of $6.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.21 and a beta of 0.99.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The industrial products company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.04. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 30.64% and a net margin of 14.97%. The firm had revenue of $462.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $461.30 million. Equities analysts forecast that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on MSA Safety from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. William Blair upgraded shares of MSA Safety to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th.

About MSA Safety

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.