Equitable Trust Co. Has $1.06 Million Stock Position in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Key Points

• Equitable Trust Co. increased its holdings in MKS Inc. by 59.2% in Q2, now owning 10,677 shares valued at approximately $1.06 million.
• A majority of research analysts have a positive outlook on MKS, with eight analysts rating it as a "Buy" and a consensus price target of $127.80.
• MKS recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 0.7%.

Equitable Trust Co. grew its holdings in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 59.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,677 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 3,972 shares during the quarter. Equitable Trust Co.'s holdings in MKS were worth $1,061,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MKSI. Optimum Investment Advisors lifted its position in shares of MKS by 66.7% during the first quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Steph & Co. bought a new position in shares of MKS during the second quarter valued at about $42,000. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in shares of MKS by 1,168.3% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 799 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 736 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of MKS by 79.2% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 828 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Finally, eCIO Inc. bought a new position in shares of MKS during the first quarter valued at about $77,000. 99.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on MKSI shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of MKS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of MKS from $92.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of MKS in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $127.80.

Insider Transactions at MKS

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of MKS stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.85, for a total value of $29,955.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 19,263 shares in the company, valued at $1,923,410.55. This trade represents a 1.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of MKS stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.14, for a total transaction of $36,642.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 11,562 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,412,182.68. The trade was a 2.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,900 shares of company stock worth $744,227 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

MKS Stock Performance

Shares of MKSI stock opened at $132.68 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.97. 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 Inc. has a 52 week low of $54.84 and a 52 week high of $142.20. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $114.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $96.17.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $973.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $931.05 million. MKS had a net margin of 7.11% and a return on equity of 20.65%. The company's revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.53 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. MKS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.34%.

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.

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