Securian Asset Management Inc. Sells 100 Shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

Securian Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in MSA Safety were worth $491,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MSA Safety in the 4th quarter worth about $43,689,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in MSA Safety during the fourth quarter worth about $29,894,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in MSA Safety by 27.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 781,705 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $138,658,000 after purchasing an additional 169,168 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of MSA Safety by 34.2% during the fourth quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 590,718 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $97,923,000 after purchasing an additional 150,402 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 25.3% during the fourth quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 651,366 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $107,977,000 after purchasing an additional 131,458 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MSA. DA Davidson began coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on MSA Safety from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $197.00.

Insider Activity

In other MSA Safety news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of MSA Safety stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total value of $114,003.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $584,007. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 6.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

MSA Safety Stock Performance

Shares of MSA opened at $151.90 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $5.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.07 and a beta of 0.99. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $160.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $168.47. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 12 month low of $148.59 and a 12 month high of $200.61. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

MSA Safety (NYSE:MSA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.02. MSA Safety had a return on equity of 28.64% and a net margin of 15.76%. Research analysts anticipate that MSA Safety Incorporated will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.29%.

MSA Safety 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.