Barclays PLC Has $89.05 Million Stock Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Barclays PLC lessened its position in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 16.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 853,050 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 166,084 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned about 1.27% of MKS Instruments worth $89,050,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MKSI. Granite Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in MKS Instruments by 49.9% during the 4th quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC now owns 38,371 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $4,006,000 after purchasing an additional 12,780 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 46.5% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 28,670 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,993,000 after buying an additional 9,102 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co boosted its stake in MKS Instruments by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 3,573 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $373,000 after acquiring an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in MKS Instruments during the 4th quarter worth $7,784,000. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 29,392 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $3,068,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $836,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 60,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,273,577.01. This represents a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total transaction of $25,426.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,607,324.64. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup upgraded shares of MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Benchmark cut their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, MKS Instruments has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.08.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

MKSI opened at $67.18 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.81. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $86.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $101.47. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 1 year low of $54.84 and a 1 year high of $147.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 3.19 and a quick ratio of 2.04.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.23. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 5.30%. Equities analysts expect that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. MKS Instruments’s payout ratio is currently 31.43%.

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.