Expect Equity LLC Purchases Shares of 32,780 MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Expect Equity LLC acquired a new position in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 32,780 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,422,000. MKS Instruments accounts for approximately 3.6% of Expect Equity LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in MKS Instruments by 3,444.0% in 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 buying an additional 292,226 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 772.7% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 61,447 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $6,481,000 after acquiring an additional 54,406 shares during the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 35,069 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $3,650,000 after acquiring an additional 7,136 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group purchased a new stake in MKS Instruments during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,480,000. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in MKS Instruments in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $85,451,000. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark cut their price target on MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Three research 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 company. According to MarketBeat, MKS Instruments currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MKS Instruments news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total transaction of $25,426.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,607,324.64. This trade represents a 1.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total transaction of $836,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 60,017 shares in the company, valued at $6,273,577.01. This trade represents a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

Shares of MKSI opened at $77.29 on Friday. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 1 year low of $54.84 and a 1 year high of $147.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 3.19. The company’s fifty day moving average is $75.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.31.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.29. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 5.30%. The firm had revenue of $936.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $913.59 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.18 earnings per share. MKS Instruments’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. 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.