Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC Buys 5,606 Shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 363,428 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 5,606 shares during the period. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC owned 0.54% of MKS Instruments worth $37,938,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MKSI. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 68.6% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 263 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of MKS Instruments in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 424.1% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 414 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of MKS Instruments in the third quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 24,900.0% in the fourth quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MKSI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark decreased their target price on MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on MKS Instruments from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on MKS Instruments from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $135.17.

MKS Instruments Price Performance

NASDAQ MKSI traded up $2.85 during trading on Friday, reaching $80.14. 1,577,384 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,070,903. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 3.19. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $75.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.14. The company has a market cap of $5.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.80. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 1-year low of $54.84 and a 1-year high of $147.40.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $936.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $913.59 million. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 5.30%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.18 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. MKS Instruments's payout ratio is currently 26.27%.

Insider Transactions at MKS Instruments

In other news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $836,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 60,017 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,273,577.01. The trade was a 11.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total value of $25,426.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,384 shares in the company, valued at $1,607,324.64. The trade was a 1.56% 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.

MKS Instruments 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.