MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Shares Bought by M&T Bank Corp

M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 15.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,884 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,530 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp's holdings in MKS were worth $1,513,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in MKS by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 9,748 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $1,018,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in MKS by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,143 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in MKS by 68.6% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 263 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in MKS by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 11,943 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $1,247,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in MKS by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 29,392 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $3,068,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MKSI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on MKS from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded MKS from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $110.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on MKS from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on MKS in a research note on Thursday. They issued a "sell" rating and a $90.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $118.89.

MKS Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MKSI opened at $106.45 on Monday. MKS Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.84 and a fifty-two week high of $145.59. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $91.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $92.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 3.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The firm has a market cap of $7.18 billion, a PE ratio of 31.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.88.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.29. MKS had a return on equity of 20.67% and a net margin of 6.21%. The firm had revenue of $936.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $913.59 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. MKS's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. MKS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of MKS stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,159,955. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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