Teacher Retirement System of Texas Purchases Shares of 9,838 MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 9,838 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $789,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MKSI. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of MKS by 772.7% in the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 61,447 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $6,481,000 after buying an additional 54,406 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group purchased a new stake in shares of MKS in the fourth quarter valued at $1,480,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its stake in shares of MKS by 2.2% in the first 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 acquiring an additional 5,422 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of MKS in the fourth quarter worth approximately $85,451,000. Finally, Summit Global Investments purchased a new stake in shares of MKS in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,254,000. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MKS Price Performance

NASDAQ:MKSI traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $104.03. 218,518 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,050,691. MKS Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.84 and a 52-week high of $135.39. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $93.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $92.19. The company has a current ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The company has a market cap of $7.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.88.

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

MKS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. MKS's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.27%.

Insider Activity at MKS

In other news, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $210,000.00. Following the sale, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MKSI. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on MKS from $93.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. 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. The Goldman Sachs Group began 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. 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 report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on MKS from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $118.80.

MKS 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.