Eagle Asset Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Eagle Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 91,133 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,087 shares during the quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $10,598,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in MKS Instruments by 196.9% in the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 288 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in MKS Instruments by 53.7% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 349 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. Key Financial Inc purchased a new position in MKS Instruments during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. BOKF NA purchased a new position in MKS Instruments during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in MKS Instruments during the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MKSI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on MKS Instruments from $120.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Citigroup downgraded shares of MKS Instruments from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $142.00 price target on shares of MKS Instruments in a report on Monday, November 18th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $153.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on MKS Instruments in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $141.09.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MKS Instruments news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.90, for a total transaction of $27,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,283 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,119,818.70. This represents a 2.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.97, for a total transaction of $31,891.75. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,079,805.98. The trade was a 1.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

MKS Instruments Trading Up 1.3 %

MKS Instruments stock opened at $114.92 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.42, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98. The firm has a market cap of $7.73 billion, a PE ratio of 255.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.63. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $107.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $118.45. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.25 and a 12 month high of $147.40.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.27. MKS Instruments had a net margin of 0.90% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The firm had revenue of $896.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $874.29 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.46 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.22 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. MKS Instruments’s payout ratio is 195.56%.

About MKS Instruments

MKS Instruments, Inc provides foundational technology solutions to semiconductor manufacturing, electronics and packaging, and specialty industrial applications in the United States, Germany, China, South Korea, and internationally. It operates through Vacuum Solutions Division (VSD), Photonics Solutions Division (PSD), and Material Solutions Division (MSD) segments.