4,195 Shares in MKS Inc. $MKSI Purchased by United Services Automobile Association

Key Points

• United Services Automobile Association acquired 4,195 shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) valued at approximately $342,000 in the first quarter of the year.
• Insider activity reported includes sales by Director Elizabeth Mora and EVP David Philip Henry, contributing to a total of 2,600 shares sold in the last 90 days.
• MKS Inc. reported earnings of $1.77 per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, with revenue of $973 million, a 9.7% increase year-over-year.

United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 4,195 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $342,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its position in MKS by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 11,943 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $1,247,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors lifted its stake in shares of MKS by 66.7% in the first quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its position in MKS by 1.3% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 16,140 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $1,294,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its position in shares of MKS by 1.1% during the first quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 18,900 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $1,515,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its position in shares of MKS by 2.7% during the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 7,881 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $631,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.85, for a total value of $29,955.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 19,263 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,923,410.55. This represents a 1.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $2,159,955. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,600 shares of company stock valued at $267,585. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

MKS Price Performance

NASDAQ MKSI traded up $1.83 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $118.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 481,655 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,171,508. The stock has a market cap of $7.94 billion, a PE ratio of 29.95, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.94. MKS Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.84 and a fifty-two week high of $125.33. The company's 50-day moving average is $102.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 2.99.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $973.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $931.05 million. MKS had a net margin of 7.11% and a return on equity of 20.65%. The firm's revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. Analysts forecast that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

MKS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. MKS's dividend payout ratio is 22.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MKSI. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of MKS in a research report on Friday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of MKS in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $90.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of MKS from $105.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MKS currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $119.80.

About MKS

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.