Dundas Partners LLP Increases Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Dundas Partners LLP lifted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 10.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,198 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Dundas Partners LLP’s holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $229,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in MKS Instruments by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 18,700 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,952,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in MKS Instruments by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,068 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $216,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in MKS Instruments by 68.6% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 263 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 5,035 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $547,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 1.3% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,729 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $949,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 60,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,273,577.01. This represents a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.80, for a total value of $34,440.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 9,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,146,048.40. The trade was a 2.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 8,575 shares of company stock worth $896,107 over the last ninety days. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on MKSI shares. Citigroup upgraded shares of MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered 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. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.08.

MKS Instruments Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of MKSI opened at $84.89 on Friday. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a twelve month low of $80.36 and a twelve month high of $147.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.75. 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $106.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $108.43.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, topping 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, equities research analysts forecast that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders 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 1.04%. MKS Instruments’s dividend 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.