Corebridge Financial Inc. Reduces Stock Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Corebridge Financial Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 4.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 76,193 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 3,422 shares during the period. Corebridge Financial Inc. owned 0.11% of MKS Instruments worth $7,954,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in 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 worth $265,874,000 after purchasing an additional 237,979 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in 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 worth $31,391,000 after purchasing an additional 292,226 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted 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 buying an additional 7,136 shares during the last quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 65.0% in the 4th quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 8,751 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $914,000 after buying an additional 3,447 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of MKS Instruments in the 4th quarter valued at $12,058,000. 99.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MKSI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Benchmark decreased their target price on MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on MKS Instruments in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.08.

MKS Instruments Stock Down 3.2 %

Shares of MKS Instruments stock opened at $84.82 on Friday. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a one year low of $76.37 and a one year high of $147.40. The company has a market cap of $5.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.29, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.75. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $100.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $105.66.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last posted 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 net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 18.94%. On average, analysts forecast that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the business’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 sale, the director now owns 60,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,273,577.01. The trade was a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 $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. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

MKS Instruments Company Profile

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.