3,563 Shares in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Bought by Blueshift Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Blueshift Asset Management LLC has acquired a new stake in MKS Inc. by purchasing 3,563 shares valued at approximately $286,000 during the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds, including Madison Asset Management and Victory Capital Management, have significantly increased their holdings in MKS, with 99.79% of the stock now owned by institutional investors.
• Mizuho and Morgan Stanley have recently raised their price targets on MKS shares to $118.00 and $112.00 respectively, indicating a positive outlook, while the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 3,563 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $286,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Madison Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MKS by 52.9% in the 1st quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC now owns 1,428,143 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $114,466,000 after buying an additional 494,207 shares during the period. Shapiro Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in MKS in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,228,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in MKS by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,388,639 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $271,599,000 after purchasing an additional 300,356 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in MKS in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,312,000. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of MKS by 158.5% during the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 367,437 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $38,357,000 after purchasing an additional 225,285 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at MKS

In other news, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $210,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,159,955. This represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MKSI shares. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of MKS from $105.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on MKS in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "sell" rating and a $90.00 target price on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on MKS from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded MKS from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $110.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MKS presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $120.00.

MKS Stock Down 2.6%

MKSI opened at $92.75 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.26 billion, a PE ratio of 27.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.86. MKS Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.84 and a twelve month high of $125.33. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $96.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $91.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 3.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $936.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $913.59 million. MKS had a return on equity of 20.67% and a net margin of 6.21%. The business's revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. MKS's payout ratio is 26.27%.

MKS 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.

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