MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Director Sells $31,187.75 in Stock

MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.41, for a total value of $31,187.75. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,002,707.19. This represents a 1.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MKSI traded down $1.06 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $116.87. 512,965 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 809,049. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $107.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $117.91. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 52-week low of $80.84 and a 52-week high of $147.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.87 billion, a PE ratio of 259.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a quick ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 3.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $896.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $874.29 million. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 15.79% and a net margin of 0.90%. MKS Instruments’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio is currently 195.56%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MKS Instruments

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKSI. Aigen Investment Management LP boosted its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 705.3% during the 3rd quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 12,547 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,364,000 after acquiring an additional 10,989 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 141,187 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $18,436,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in MKS Instruments during the second quarter worth approximately $1,599,000. Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 444,333 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $48,303,000 after purchasing an additional 30,216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 3,928.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 76,828 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $10,110,000 after purchasing an additional 74,921 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MKSI. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of MKS Instruments in a research note on Monday, August 5th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $155.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on MKS Instruments from $140.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on MKS Instruments in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $142.00 price target on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Citigroup lowered MKS Instruments from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.09.

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.