MKS Inc. $MKSI Shares Sold by Rhumbline Advisers

Rhumbline Advisers reduced its position in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 183,415 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 3,210 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.27% of MKS worth $22,701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of MKS during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $85,391,000. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC increased its holdings in MKS by 146.4% in the 2nd quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 912,380 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $90,654,000 after acquiring an additional 542,094 shares in the last quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC raised its position in MKS by 79.3% during the second quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 991,298 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $98,495,000 after acquiring an additional 438,338 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in MKS by 63.4% during the second quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 878,114 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $87,249,000 after purchasing an additional 340,645 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of MKS by 44.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 982,643 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $97,635,000 after purchasing an additional 301,223 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

MKS Trading Up 4.6%

NASDAQ MKSI opened at $260.95 on Tuesday. MKS Inc. has a 12 month low of $54.84 and a 12 month high of $266.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 63.34, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.94. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $197.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $152.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 1.81.

MKS Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is an increase from MKS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. MKS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.36%.

Insider Transactions at MKS

In related news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.81, for a total transaction of $47,643.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,963 shares in the company, valued at $3,011,514.03. This trade represents a 1.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on MKS from $175.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on MKS from $122.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of MKS from $215.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of MKS from $187.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on shares of MKS from $210.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.50.

MKS Profile

MKS Instruments, Inc (NASDAQ: MKSI) designs, manufactures and markets technology solutions that enable advanced processes in a variety of high‐technology and industrial markets. The company’s core offerings include vacuum and gas delivery systems, pressure and flow measurement instruments, optical metrology tools, photonics subsystems and critical components for manufacturing processes. These products support the precise control and monitoring needs of semiconductor, industrial manufacturing, life and health sciences, and research applications.

The company’s product portfolio features mass flow controllers, pressure transducers, vacuum gauges, gas purity monitors, laser-based metrology systems and photonic devices such as lasers and detectors.