KeyCorp Reduces Earnings Estimates for MSC Industrial Direct

MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) – Investment analysts at KeyCorp cut their Q3 2025 earnings estimates for MSC Industrial Direct in a report issued on Monday, December 9th. KeyCorp analyst K. Newman now expects that the industrial products company will post earnings of $0.94 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $1.11. The consensus estimate for MSC Industrial Direct’s current full-year earnings is $3.65 per share. KeyCorp also issued estimates for MSC Industrial Direct’s FY2025 earnings at $3.49 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.04 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $3.89 EPS.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on MSM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $87.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Stephens lowered shares of MSC Industrial Direct from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

MSM stock opened at $84.27 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.40 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. MSC Industrial Direct has a 12-month low of $75.05 and a 12-month high of $104.76. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $83.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.53.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $952.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $959.74 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 6.77% and a return on equity of 19.35%. MSC Industrial Direct’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.64 EPS.

MSC Industrial Direct Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.03%. This is a positive change from MSC Industrial Direct’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.24%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Erik Gershwind sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.36, for a total transaction of $4,518,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,402,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,761,435.64. This represents a 3.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Philip Peller sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $80,163.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,044 shares in the company, valued at $360,199.08. This represents a 18.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 18.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSC Industrial Direct

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fulcrum Equity Management acquired a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 3rd quarter worth about $204,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 25,675 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,210,000 after acquiring an additional 511 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct in the 3rd quarter worth about $248,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 38.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 962 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 641,779 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,232,000 after acquiring an additional 35,077 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

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.