Schroder Investment Management Group Purchases New Shares in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Schroder Investment Management Group acquired a new stake in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 14,217 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $1,480,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its holdings in MKS Instruments by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 9,748 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $1,018,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in MKS Instruments by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,143 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its stake in MKS Instruments by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 18,700 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $1,952,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in MKS Instruments by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,068 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $216,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in MKS Instruments by 68.6% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 263 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MKSI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on MKS Instruments in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $145.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark lowered their target price on MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup raised MKS Instruments from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, MKS Instruments has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $140.08.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

MKS Instruments stock traded up $1.29 on Friday, hitting $65.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,517,554 shares, compared to its average volume of 990,272. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a one year low of $54.84 and a one year high of $147.40. The firm has a market cap of $4.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 3.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $88.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $102.08.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $0.23. MKS Instruments had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 18.94%. On average, equities analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. MKS Instruments's payout ratio is presently 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 on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total transaction of $836,240.00. Following the completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total transaction of $25,426.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,384 shares in the company, valued at $1,607,324.64. This represents a 1.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.