AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Decreases Stock Holdings in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc cut its stake in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,287 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,873 shares during the period. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc owned approximately 0.16% of MSA Safety worth $10,647,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MSA. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in MSA Safety by 78.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 182 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in MSA Safety by 486.0% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank increased its position in shares of MSA Safety by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 520 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $86,000 after buying an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 690.5% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 751 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $133,000 after buying an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of MSA Safety by 985.1% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 803 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $143,000 after buying an additional 729 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSA Safety Stock Performance

NYSE:MSA opened at $163.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a PE ratio of 23.69 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $168.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $174.59. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 1-year low of $153.79 and a 1-year high of $200.60.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $432.68 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $449.95 million. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 29.14% and a net margin of 15.16%. MSA Safety’s revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.78 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

MSA Safety Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on MSA. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of MSA Safety in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. B. Riley initiated coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Finally, DA Davidson initiated coverage on MSA Safety in a report on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MSA Safety currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.50.

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.