Systematic Financial Management LP Raises Stock Holdings in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Key Points

• Systematic Financial Management LP has increased its position in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 1.2% in the first quarter, now holding approximately 0.33% of the company worth $17.8 million.
• MKS reported earnings of $1.77 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenue of $973 million for the quarter, up 9.7% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, with a 0.8% dividend yield, and a payout ratio of 22.34%.

Systematic Financial Management LP boosted its position in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 1.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 222,235 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 2,557 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP owned approximately 0.33% of MKS worth $17,812,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in MKS in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $789,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its holdings in MKS by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 251,799 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $20,182,000 after buying an additional 5,422 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in MKS by 15.5% in the 1st quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 18,884 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $1,513,000 after buying an additional 2,530 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in MKS by 16.2% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 110,765 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $8,878,000 after buying an additional 15,482 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in MKS by 33.7% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 11,973 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $960,000 after purchasing an additional 3,021 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at MKS

In other MKS news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of MKS stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.10, for a total value of $27,630.00. Following the sale, the director owned 11,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,092,490.20. The trade was a 2.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $210,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,159,955. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of MKS from $105.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on shares of MKS from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of MKS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $119.80.

MKS Stock Performance

MKS stock traded up $0.74 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $106.42. The stock had a trading volume of 164,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,177,191. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $100.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $89.76. MKS Inc. has a 12 month low of $54.84 and a 12 month high of $125.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.15 billion, a PE ratio of 27.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.88, a current ratio of 2.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $973.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $931.05 million. MKS had a return on equity of 20.65% and a net margin of 7.11%.MKS's revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.53 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict 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 will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. MKS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.