MKS Inc. $MKSI Shares Sold by Invesco Ltd.

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. reduced its holdings in MKS Inc. by 8.2%, now owning approximately $164.27 million worth of shares and representing 3.04% of the company.
• MKS recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, with a total annualized payout expected to be $0.88, resulting in a dividend yield of 0.9%.
• Quarterly earnings reports revealed MKS Inc. achieved an EPS of $1.77, exceeding estimates, and the company is anticipated to post an EPS of 6.94 for the current year.

Invesco Ltd. reduced its position in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 8.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,049,563 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 181,904 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned about 3.04% of MKS worth $164,272,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also 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 worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in MKS by 89.3% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 581 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in MKS by 79.2% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 828 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its stake in MKS by 1,330.9% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 787 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 732 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its stake in MKS by 64.8% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,574 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 1,012 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MKSI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on shares of MKS from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Mizuho increased 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. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of MKS in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "sell" rating and a $90.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating on shares of MKS in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $119.80.

MKS Stock Performance

Shares of MKSI stock traded down $0.1550 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $100.9450. The stock had a trading volume of 155,469 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,191,775. 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 twelve month low of $54.84 and a twelve month high of $125.33. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $99.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $89.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.78 billion, a PE ratio of 25.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.86.

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

MKS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. MKS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.34%.

Insider Activity

In other MKS news, 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 transaction, the director owned 11,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,092,490.20. This trade represents a 2.47% decrease in their position. The transaction 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 firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $210,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,159,955. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.51% of the stock is currently 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.