AQR Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in MKS Inc. by 19.4%, owning approximately 70,211 shares valued at $5.53 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted their positions in MKS during the first quarter, with Wellington Management Group leading with an increase of 41.8%, now holding over 3.25 million shares.
• MKS recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 0.8%, reflecting a payout ratio of 22.34%.

AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 19.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 70,211 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,403 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.10% of MKS worth $5,534,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MKSI. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in MKS by 41.8% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,250,085 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $260,494,000 after buying an additional 958,607 shares in the last quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in MKS in the first quarter valued at about $44,320,000. Madison Asset Management LLC boosted its position in MKS by 52.9% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Shapiro Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in MKS in the fourth quarter valued at about $48,228,000. Finally, Kodai Capital Management LP boosted its position in MKS by 138.3% in the first quarter. Kodai Capital Management LP now owns 708,021 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $56,748,000 after buying an additional 410,865 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MKSI shares. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of MKS from $105.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of MKS in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $90.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of MKS from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MKS presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $119.80.

MKS Trading Up 8.8%

NASDAQ:MKSI traded up $10.48 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $129.92. The stock had a trading volume of 2,366,131 shares, compared to its average volume of 984,176. MKS Inc. has a one year low of $54.84 and a one year high of $132.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 2.99. The company has a market cap of $8.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.94. The business's 50 day moving average is $103.94 and its 200-day moving average is $90.69.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $973.00 million during 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.53 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MKS Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. MKS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MKS news, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,159,955. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.10, for a total transaction of $27,630.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,092,490.20. This represents a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,600 shares of company stock valued at $267,585. 0.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

MKS 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.