MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM) will release earnings results for the third quarter, before the opening bell on Tuesday, July 1.

Analysts expect the Melville, New York-based company to report quarterly earnings at $1.03 per share, down from $1.33 per share in the year-ago period. MSC Industrial Direct projects to report quarterly revenue at $969.19 million, compared to $979.35 million a year earlier, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

MSC Industrial, known for producing metalworking and maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) products, reported a second-quarter net sales decline of 4.7% year-over-year to $891.7 million. It missed the consensus of $899.54 million.

If investors are eyeing potential gains from the company's dividends, MSC Industrial offers an annual dividend yield of 3.98%. That’s a quarterly dividend amount of $3.40 per share (85 cents a year).  

So, how can investors exploit the dividend yield to pocket a regular $500 monthly?

To earn $500 per month or $6,000 annually from dividends alone, you would need an investment of approximately $150,872 or around 1,765 shares. For a more modest $100 per month or $1,200 per year, you would need $30,174 or around 353 shares.

To calculate: Divide the desired annual income ($6,000 or $1,200) by the dividend ($3.40 in this case). So, $6,000 / $3.40 = 1,765 ($500 per month), and $1,200 / $3.40 = 353 shares ($100 per month).

Note that dividend yield can change on a rolling basis, as the dividend payment and the stock price both fluctuate over time.

How that works: The dividend yield is computed by dividing the annual dividend payment by the stock’s current price.

For example, if a stock pays an annual dividend of $2 and is currently priced at $50, the dividend yield would be 4% ($2/$50). However, if the stock price increases to $60, the dividend yield drops to 3.33% ($2/$60). Conversely, if the stock price falls to $40, the dividend yield rises to 5% ($2/$40).

Similarly, changes in the dividend payment can impact the yield. If a company increases its dividend, the yield will also increase, provided the stock price stays the same. Conversely, if the dividend payment decreases, so will the yield.

MSM Price Action: Shares of MSC Industrial Direct gained 0.8% to close at $85.48 on Friday.

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