At a glance
MSC Industrial Direct Company Inc is worth $6.85B, about 31 times its fiscal 2026 earnings. Revenue grew 6.4% to $4.01B in fiscal 2026, with 5.6% kept as profit; over 5 years it has grown 4.3% a year. It pays a 2.84% dividend yield, raised every year for at least 5 years, and returned $1.28B to shareholders in dividends and buybacks over FY2022–FY2026. The stock returned +50.8% over the past year with dividends reinvested and +12.1% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 35.2% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 16.9% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high 2 months after the low.
The business in plain English
MSC Industrial Direct is a North American distributor of the tools and supplies that industrial businesses need to keep running. It sells metalworking products such as cutting tools, abrasives and measuring instruments. It also sells MRO supplies (maintenance, repair and operations), including fasteners, power tools, and safety and janitorial products. Customers range from individual machine shops to Fortune 1000 companies. Government buyers such as federal agencies and state governments are also customers.
Other companies make most of what MSC sells. It sources from more than 3,000 suppliers, and none accounted for more than 5% of purchases in fiscal 2026 (ended August 29, 2026). It earns the gap between what it pays and what it charges across about 2.5 million active items. Its exclusive brands made up about 15% of net sales. To win and keep customers, it adds services: more than 160 technical specialists, vending machines on factory floors, and programs that track and restock customers' inventory.
Fiscal 2026 revenue rose 6.4% to about $4.0 billion. The gross margin, the share of sales left after paying for products, was 40.9%. After other costs, the operating margin was 8%. Its network includes five customer fulfillment centers and 37 warehouses, 35 of them in North America. It guarantees same-day shipping on core products.
Price history
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MSM +50.8% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
Latest results
- In Q4 FY2026 (ended Aug 29, 2026), revenue was $1.08B, up 10.3% from a year earlier, and net income was $47.9M (-15.2%).
- For fiscal 2026, revenue was $4.01B (+6.4% year over year; +4.3% a year from FY2021 to FY2026) with a 5.6% net margin.
Financial health check
| Revenue growth a year (FY2021–FY2026) | +4.3% watch |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | 8% watch |
| Free cash flow margin | 5.6% watch |
| Return on equity (FY2026) | 15.6% good |
| Return on assets (FY2026) | 8.9% good |
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | $-411.4M weak |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2021 | $3.24B | $216.9M | $170.7M |
| FY2022 | $3.69B | $339.8M | $184.8M |
| FY2023 | $4.01B | $343.2M | $607.1M |
| FY2024 | $3.82B | $258.6M | $311.3M |
| FY2025 | $3.77B | $199.3M | $240.9M |
| FY2026 | $4.01B | $222.6M | $225.2M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $6.85B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | 30.8 |
| Dividend yield | 2.84% |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Market value at each year end
MSC Industrial Direct Company’s market value went from $5.71B at the end of 2023 to $6.85B on Oct 28, 2026, up 20%; since the end of 2025 it is up 46%.
Show as a table
| Year end | Market value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 28, 2026 | $6.85B | +45.9% |
| 2025 | $4.69B | +12.5% |
| 2024 | $4.17B | -26.9% |
| 2023 | $5.71B |
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSM price data to Oct 28, 2026 | +49.7% | +50.8% | +13.5% | +12.1% | +10.5% |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +49.7% |
| 2025 | +17.3% |
| 2024 | -23.4% |
| 2023 | +28.5% |
| 2022 | +0.9% |
| 2021 | +3.1% |
| 2020 | +25.3% |
| 2019 | +5.8% |
| 2018 | -18.3% |
| 2017 | +7.4% |
| 2016 | +68.2% |
| 2015 | -29.1% |
| 2014 | +6.3% |
| 2013 | +8.6% |
| 2012 | +7.3% |
| 2011 | +12.1% |
| 2010 | +42.3% |
| 2009 | +30.4% |
| 2008 | -7.2% |
| 2007 | +4.8% |
| 2006 | -1.5% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Lost 45.9% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 48.9%, back to its old high 13 months after the low |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 34.3% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 35.2%, back to its old high 2.3 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Lost 8.4% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 16.9%, back to its old high 2.1 months after the low |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-10-29 to 2026-10-29 (25 read): 6 open-market purchases ($31.0M) and 1 sales ($156K).
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 23, 2026 | Mitchell Jacobson Director, 10% owner | buy | $15.6M |
| Oct 23, 2026 | Mitchell Jacobson Director, 10% owner | buy | $7.0M |
| Oct 23, 2026 | Mitchell Jacobson Director, 10% owner | buy | $6.3M |
| Nov 18, 2025 | Mitchell Jacobson Director, 10% owner | buy | $1.9M |
| Feb 2, 2026 | Rudina Seseri Director | sell | $156K |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| BlackRock, Inc. | 9.1% | Mar 31, 2025 |
| Harlan B. Korenvaes | 5.9% | Aug 4, 2026 |
| American Century Investment Management, Inc. | 5.1% | Dec 31, 2025 |
ETFs with the most weight in MSM
| ERNZ TrueShares Active Yield ETF | 3.38% |
| IBUY Amplify Online Retail ETF | 2.44% |
| AIRR First Trust RBA American Industrial Renaissance ETF | 2.34% |
| ABLD Abacus FCF Real Assets Leaders ETF | 2.31% |
| OUSM ALPS | O’Shares U.S. Small-Cap Quality Dividend ETF | 2.04% |
| HEJD VictoryShares Hedged Equity Income ETF | 1.01% |
| QSML WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality Growth Fund | 0.68% |
| RFDA RiverFront Dynamic US Dividend Advantage ETF | 0.57% |
What could go wrong
- Sales track the manufacturing cycle. MSC's business is closely tied to manufacturing. When customers cut production in a downturn, they need fewer supplies, push for lower prices, and more fail to pay. Factories moving overseas could also shrink its market.
- Big accounts and vending squeeze the markup. MSC's profit depends on the markup it earns. Large national accounts and public sector customers get lower prices for their larger purchases. Growth in vending and e-commerce also squeezes that markup.
- Principal shareholders hold outsized influence. A group of principal shareholders owns a significant amount of the voting stock and has the right to nominate directors. Their interests may not match those of other shareholders.
- Tariffs and trade policy changes. Shifts in trade policy can make sourcing products from overseas harder or costlier. MSC says lower industrial activity caused by tariffs has also affected its main end markets.
- Rising costs it cannot pass on. When steel, tungsten, fuel or labor costs climb, suppliers and freight carriers raise prices. If MSC cannot raise its own prices to match, margins shrink. Steep cost declines can also drag selling prices down.
- A consolidating, competitive industry. The industrial supply market is fragmented but consolidating. Bigger rivals gain scale, some offer wider product ranges or have deeper finances, and rivals with lower-cost business models can undercut MSC on price.
Recent events
- Quarterly results released
- Investor presentation or announcement
- Executive or board change; Investor presentation or announcement
- Executive or board change
- Quarterly results released
- Investor presentation or announcement
- Executive or board change
- Quarterly results released
- Investor presentation or announcement
- Executive or board change; Investor presentation or announcement
For income and retirement investors
MSC paid $3.47 per share in dividends in fiscal 2026, which ended August 29, 2026. The yield was 2.84% as of October 28, 2026. The regular dividend has risen for five straight fiscal years, but slowly, by about 3.1% a year since fiscal 2021. The cushion is thin. Dividends took 87.3% of fiscal 2026 earnings and 86.3% of free cash flow (cash left after running and investing in the business). Earnings per share slid from $6.11 in fiscal 2023 to $3.98. Buybacks totaled about $364 million from fiscal 2022 to 2026 but fell to $14 million in fiscal 2026.
The shares fell about 49% in the 2008 financial crisis and did not regain their prior high until April 2010. They dropped 35% in the 2020 COVID crash and 17% in the 2022 bear market, recovering in about two months each time. Like any single stock, MSC carries more risk than a diversified fund.
Questions investors ask
How does MSC Industrial make money?
MSC makes money by distributing industrial supplies. It sources metalworking tools, MRO items (maintenance, repair and operations supplies) and fasteners from more than 3,000 suppliers. It resells them to machine shops, Fortune 1000 companies and government agencies. It offers about 2.5 million active items. In fiscal 2026, which ended August 29, 2026, revenue was about $4.0 billion. MSC kept 40.9% of sales after paying for the goods it sold, and 8% after all operating costs. Its exclusive brands made up about 15% of net sales.
Does MSC Industrial raise its dividend every year?
It has for five straight fiscal years, through fiscal 2026 (ended August 29, 2026). The increases have been small. Dividends per share rose from about $2.98 in fiscal 2021 to $3.47 in fiscal 2026, roughly 3.1% a year. They barely moved from fiscal 2021 to fiscal 2022 ($2.98 versus $2.99). The dividend took 87.3% of fiscal 2026 earnings, so faster growth would likely depend on profits rising.
Is MSC Industrial's dividend safe?
It was covered in fiscal 2026, but with little room to spare. MSC paid about $194 million in dividends against $225 million of free cash flow (cash left after running and investing in the business), a payout of 86.3%. The dividend also took 87.3% of earnings. MSC had about $476 million of debt and $65 million of cash at August 29, 2026. Earnings per share fell from $6.11 in fiscal 2023 to $3.98 in fiscal 2026, so a further drop in profit would tighten coverage.
How has MSC Industrial stock performed?
On price alone, MSC shares gained about 10.5% a year over the 10 years to October 28, 2026, or 171% in total. Over five years they gained 12.1% a year. The path has been uneven. The stock fell 29.1% in 2015 and 23.4% in 2024. Its worst decline in about 21 years of price history was 50.8%. The shares rose 49.7% from the start of 2026 through October 28, 2026. At that point they traded at 30.8 times fiscal 2026 earnings per share.
Who owns the most MSC Industrial stock?
Major holders include BlackRock, which reported 9.1% of the shares as of March 31, 2025. Harlan B. Korenvaes reported 5.9% as of August 4, 2026, and American Century Investment Management reported 5.1% as of December 31, 2025. Director Mitchell Jacobson is listed in insider filings as a 10% owner. He purchased about $15.6 million, $7.0 million and $6.3 million of stock on October 23, 2026. MSC's 10-K says its principal shareholders own a significant amount of the voting stock and can nominate directors.