Cetera Trust Company N.A Buys New Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Cetera Trust Company N.A bought a new stake in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,875 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $193,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Covestor Ltd grew its position in MKS Instruments by 19.1% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 692 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its position in MKS Instruments by 73.5% during the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 295 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Eqis Capital Management Inc. grew its position in MKS Instruments by 4.7% during the first quarter. Eqis Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,811 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $422,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in MKS Instruments by 0.5% during the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 29,144 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,522,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. grew its position in MKS Instruments by 2.3% during the third quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 7,261 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $628,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MKS Instruments Stock Down 3.5 %

Shares of MKS Instruments stock opened at $108.17 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a current ratio of 3.18. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 52-week low of $63.44 and a 52-week high of $135.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 1.67. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $124.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.75.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $893.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $845.25 million. MKS Instruments had a negative net margin of 50.80% and a positive return on equity of 9.95%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.00 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 4.54 EPS for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -3.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on MKSI. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Benchmark increased their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $85.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of MKS Instruments from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.75.

Insider Activity at MKS Instruments

In related news, CFO Seth H. Bagshaw sold 32,865 shares of MKS Instruments stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.28, for a total value of $4,051,597.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 1 shares in the company, valued at $123.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other MKS Instruments news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.89, for a total transaction of $30,722.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,161 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,125,795.29. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Seth H. Bagshaw sold 32,865 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.28, for a total value of $4,051,597.20. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 1 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $123.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 50,776 shares of company stock worth $6,226,307 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

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.