Rhumbline Advisers Buys 1,534 Shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 186,329 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,534 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned about 0.28% of MKS Instruments worth $19,451,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Aigen Investment Management LP boosted its stake in MKS Instruments by 705.3% in the third quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 12,547 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,364,000 after purchasing an additional 10,989 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 7.3% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 444,333 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $48,303,000 after acquiring an additional 30,216 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,525,037 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $265,874,000 after acquiring an additional 237,979 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 3,444.0% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 300,711 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $31,391,000 after acquiring an additional 292,226 shares during the period. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 35,069 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $3,650,000 after acquiring an additional 7,136 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MKS Instruments Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of MKS Instruments stock opened at $107.85 on Friday. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 1 year low of $97.54 and a 1 year high of $147.40. The business has a 50-day moving average of $110.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $110.07. The company has a market capitalization of $7.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.66. 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 quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $0.23. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 5.30%. As a group, equities analysts predict that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 7.05 EPS for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MKSI. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup raised MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on MKS Instruments in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $145.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total transaction of $836,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 60,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,273,577.01. This trade represents a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.41, for a total value of $31,187.75. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,002,707.19. The trade was a 1.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 8,575 shares of company stock worth $901,868 over the last ninety days. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.