OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd Invests $2.56 Million in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Key Points

• OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd invested approximately $2.56 million in MKS Inc. during the first quarter, acquiring 31,903 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company.
• MKS recently received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with an average target price of $120.00, while hedge funds and institutional investors collectively own 99.79% of the stock.
• The company reported $1.71 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $936 million, marking a 7.8% year-over-year increase.

OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd purchased a new position in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 31,903 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $2,557,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Optimum Investment Advisors increased its holdings in MKS by 66.7% during the 1st 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 during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings 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 worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position 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 in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its position 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in MKS during the 4th quarter valued at $89,000. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MKSI. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on MKS from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on MKS in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $90.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised MKS from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $110.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on MKS from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on MKS from $105.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $120.00.

MKS Stock Performance

Shares of MKSI opened at $92.75 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $96.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $91.33. MKS Inc. has a one year low of $54.84 and a one year high of $125.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 3.11. The stock has a market cap of $6.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.86.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $936.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $913.59 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.18 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

MKS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. MKS's payout ratio is 26.27%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the business'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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,159,955. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.57% 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.

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