Headlands Technologies LLC Buys 12,092 Shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Key Points

• Headlands Technologies LLC has increased its stake in MKS Inc. by 86.3% during the first quarter, now owning 26,106 shares worth approximately $2,092,000.
• MKS recently reported earnings of $1.77 per share, exceeding estimates, with revenue growth of 9.7% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 0.9%, to be paid on September 5th.

Headlands Technologies LLC increased its stake in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 86.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,106 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 12,092 shares during the quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC's holdings in MKS were worth $2,092,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of MKS by 1.0% in 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 purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in MKS by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 29,392 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $3,068,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its holdings in MKS by 66.7% in the 1st quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted 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 acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings 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 worth $1,515,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MKS news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.10, for a total value 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 trade represents a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of MKS 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,159,955. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on MKS from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MKS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on shares of MKS from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on MKS in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "sell" rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $119.80.

MKS Price Performance

Shares of MKSI stock traded up $4.32 on Tuesday, hitting $102.49. 435,565 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,199,022. The company has a 50 day moving average of $97.80 and a 200 day moving average of $90.10. The stock has a market cap of $6.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.99 and a quick ratio of 1.88. MKS Inc. has a 12 month low of $54.84 and a 12 month high of $125.33.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $973.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 previous year, the firm posted $1.53 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

MKS Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. MKS's payout ratio is currently 22.34%.

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.