KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Makes New $1.77 Million Investment in MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 10,700 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,774,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in MSA Safety by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 9,245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,640,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MSA Safety by 6.9% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 418,237 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $74,170,000 after purchasing an additional 26,835 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of MSA Safety by 5.7% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 7,792 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,382,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in MSA Safety by 26.3% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 2,527 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $448,000 after purchasing an additional 526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in MSA Safety during the third quarter valued at approximately $627,000. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Jonathan D. Buck sold 717 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 16.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 6.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

MSA Safety Price Performance

Shares of MSA Safety stock opened at $151.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.79. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 52-week low of $148.23 and a 52-week high of $200.61. The company has a fifty day moving average of $159.49 and a 200-day moving average of $167.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.08 and a beta of 0.99.

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

MSA Safety Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.