Renaissance Technologies LLC Takes $13.09 Million Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 125,403 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $13,091,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.19% of MKS Instruments as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in MKS Instruments by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,445,956 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $777,283,000 after acquiring an additional 97,392 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in MKS Instruments by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,088,283 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $322,386,000 after buying an additional 35,256 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in MKS Instruments by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,525,037 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $265,874,000 after buying an additional 237,979 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,291,478 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $239,207,000 after acquiring an additional 6,715 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,231,467 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $232,943,000 after acquiring an additional 6,964 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on MKSI shares. Citigroup raised shares of MKS Instruments from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Benchmark decreased their target price on MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of MKS Instruments in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Three 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $140.08.

MKS Instruments Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MKSI traded down $3.51 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $60.21. The company had a trading volume of 67,909 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,008,175. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $83.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $100.56. The stock has a market cap of $4.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 3.19 and a quick ratio of 2.04. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.84 and a twelve month high of $147.40.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 earnings per share 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 predict that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. MKS Instruments's payout ratio is 31.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MKS Instruments news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $6,273,577.01. This represents a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 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 transaction of $25,426.50. Following the sale, the director now 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. 0.51% of the stock is owned by 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.