Willis Investment Counsel Trims Stock Holdings in MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. $MSM

06 Feb 2026, 14:55 by Kim Johansen · The Markets Daily

Willis Investment Counsel cut its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. (NYSE:MSM – Free Report) by 75.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,487 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 77,911 shares during the quarter. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in MSC Industrial Direct were worth $2,348,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MSM. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1.3% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 13,180 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,214,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 12,700 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,170,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 52.2% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 595 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,744 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $253,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 5.5% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,216 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at MSC Industrial Direct

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, Director Philip Peller bought 6,666 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost 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 ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mitchell Jacobson bought 22,870 shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $84.96 per share, with a total value of $1,943,035.20. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 2,328,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $197,803,192.32. This represents a 0.99% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 19.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on MSM. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $95.00 price objective on MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Friday. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 price target on MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of MSC Industrial Direct from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct in a research report on Friday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $90.50.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on MSC Industrial Direct

MSC Industrial Direct Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:MSM opened at $95.48 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $85.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $87.46. The company has a market cap of $5.33 billion, a PE ratio of 26.03 and a beta of 0.84. MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.10 and a fifty-two week high of $95.60.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The industrial products company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.04. MSC Industrial Direct had a net margin of 5.37% and a return on equity of 15.73%. The company had revenue of $965.68 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $962.52 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. MSC Industrial Direct’s revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Company, Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 14th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 14th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. MSC Industrial Direct’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 95.08%.

MSC Industrial Direct Company Profile

(Free Report)

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc (NYSE: MSM) is a leading distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) products serving a broad range of industrial customers across North America. The company offers an extensive portfolio of cutting tools, abrasives, measuring and inspection instruments, fasteners, safety supplies and other essential components used in manufacturing, metalworking and production environments. MSC delivers products through a multi-channel distribution network, including an extensive branch system, e-commerce platform and dedicated sales force.