MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) Sets New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) shares reached a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $153.79 and last traded at $155.18, with a volume of 6747 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $156.31.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. B. Riley initiated coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson began coverage on MSA Safety in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on MSA Safety in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $200.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MSA Safety has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $202.50.

MSA Safety Stock Up 1.0 %

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $170.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $175.98. The company has a current ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.80 and a beta of 1.00.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.05. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 29.14% and a net margin of 15.16%. The business had revenue of $432.68 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $449.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. MSA Safety’s revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.48%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of MSA Safety by 486.0% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank lifted its holdings in MSA Safety by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 520 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its stake in MSA Safety by 690.5% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 751 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $133,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in MSA Safety by 985.1% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 803 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $143,000 after buying an additional 729 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kowal Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in MSA Safety during the 2nd quarter valued at about $204,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MSA Safety Company 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.