Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Has $1.19 Million Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lowered its position in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 27.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,366 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 4,283 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $1,186,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MKS Instruments in the fourth quarter valued at about $97,494,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of MKS Instruments during the 4th quarter worth $85,451,000. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 108.6% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,019,134 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $110,789,000 after buying an additional 530,620 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 3,444.0% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 300,711 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $31,391,000 after purchasing an additional 292,226 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in MKS Instruments in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,312,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MKSI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup raised MKS Instruments from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of MKS Instruments in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Benchmark decreased their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $140.08.

Insider Activity

In other MKS Instruments news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 60,017 shares in the company, valued at $6,273,577.01. This represents a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total value of $25,426.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,384 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,607,324.64. This represents a 1.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

MKSI traded down $2.01 on Wednesday, hitting $69.43. 334,241 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,320,402. The company has a current ratio of 3.19, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $78.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $98.74. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.84 and a twelve month high of $147.40. The firm has a market cap of $4.68 billion, a PE ratio of 24.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.81.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.23. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 5.30%. On average, research analysts anticipate that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. MKS Instruments's payout ratio is currently 31.43%.

MKS Instruments 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.