Strs Ohio Takes $4.24 Million Position in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Key Points

• Strs Ohio invested approximately $4.24 million in MKS Inc., acquiring 52,894 shares of the company in the first quarter.
• MKS reported earnings of $1.77 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.61 and demonstrating a 9.7% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 0.8%.

Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 52,894 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $4,239,000. Strs Ohio owned approximately 0.08% of MKS at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of MKS by 3.6% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 267,421 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $21,434,000 after buying an additional 9,170 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in MKS in the 1st quarter valued at about $342,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in MKS during the first quarter valued at about $939,000. NFJ Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in MKS by 344.5% during the first quarter. NFJ Investment Group LLC now owns 60,094 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $4,817,000 after buying an additional 46,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV increased its holdings in shares of MKS by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 40,366 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $3,235,000 after purchasing an additional 3,210 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MKS Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of MKS stock traded down $1.30 on Friday, reaching $128.62. 5,743,636 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,074,754. MKS Inc. has a one year low of $54.84 and a one year high of $132.44. The company has a 50-day moving average of $104.38 and a 200 day moving average of $90.98. 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 $8.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.64, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.94.

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

MKS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. MKS's payout ratio is currently 22.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MKSI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on MKS from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Zacks Research downgraded MKS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Wall Street Zen downgraded MKS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, September 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating on shares of MKS in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MKS presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $119.80.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David Philip Henry sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $650,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 15,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,024,230. The trade was a 24.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of MKS stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.10, for a total value of $27,630.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,092,490.20. The trade was a 2.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,600 shares of company stock worth $917,585 over the last quarter. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.