Millennium Management LLC Grows Position in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Key Points

• Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in MKS Inc. by 132.2%, owning approximately 0.81% of the company's shares, worth about $43.7 million as of the latest filing.
• MKS Inc. reported earnings of $1.77 per share for the latest quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $1.61 and showing a revenue increase of 9.7% year-over-year.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 0.8%, with a payout ratio of 22.34%.

Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 132.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 545,109 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after purchasing an additional 310,314 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned 0.81% of MKS worth $43,690,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Optimum Investment Advisors lifted its position in MKS by 66.7% in 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 during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in MKS by 89.3% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 581 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in MKS by 1,168.3% in 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 during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in MKS by 79.2% in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in MKS by 64.8% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,574 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $206,000 after purchasing an additional 1,012 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company's stock.

MKS Stock Down 0.8%

MKSI traded down $0.90 during trading on Friday, reaching $115.10. The stock had a trading volume of 1,320,681 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,175,409. The stock's 50 day moving average is $102.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.74. The company has a current ratio of 2.99, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The company has a market capitalization of $7.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.94. MKS Inc. has a one year low of $54.84 and a one year high of $125.33.

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

MKS Announces Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. MKS's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.34%.

Insider Transactions at MKS

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.85, for a total value of $29,955.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 19,263 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,923,410.55. This represents a 1.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,159,955. This represents a 8.86% 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. Insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on MKSI shares. Zacks Research downgraded MKS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Mizuho upped their target price on MKS from $105.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen downgraded MKS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, September 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on MKS from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $119.80.

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.