Banco Santander S.A. Sells 7,841 Shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Key Points

• Banco Santander S.A. decreased its stake in MKS Inc. by 40.5% during the first quarter, leaving it with 11,499 shares valued at approximately $922,000.
• Several institutional investors significantly increased their holdings in MKS during the same period; for instance, Optimum Investment Advisors boosted its position by 66.7%.
• MKS's average price target has been set at $120.00, with recent analyst upgrades indicating a general sentiment of a "Moderate Buy" for the stock.

Banco Santander S.A. decreased its position in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 40.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,499 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 7,841 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in MKS were worth $922,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in MKS by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 25,145 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $2,625,000 after purchasing an additional 1,992 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in MKS by 1.0% in the 4th 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 purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in MKS in the 4th quarter worth about $684,000. Schroder Investment Management Group bought a new position in MKS in the 4th quarter worth about $1,480,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in MKS by 43.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 33,502 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $3,497,000 after purchasing an additional 10,191 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $2,159,955. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the director directly owned 11,862 shares in the company, valued at $1,092,490.20. The trade was a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on MKS from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho lifted their price target on MKS from $105.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on MKS from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on MKS in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "sell" rating and a $90.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MKS currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $119.80.

MKS Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of MKS stock traded up $0.54 during trading on Friday, reaching $99.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 782,648 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,201,972. MKS Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.84 and a 52-week high of $125.33. 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's 50-day moving average is $97.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $90.82. The company has a market cap of $6.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.21, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.86.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.16. MKS had a return on equity of 21.08% and a net margin of 7.11%. The company had revenue of $973.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $931.05 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.53 EPS. MKS's revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Dividend Announcement

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