MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Shares Sold by Capital International Investors

Capital International Investors reduced its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,097,676 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 62,713 shares during the period. Capital International Investors owned about 4.60% of MKS Instruments worth $323,366,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barclays PLC raised 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 valued at $110,789,000 after purchasing an additional 530,620 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in MKS Instruments in the third quarter valued at approximately $763,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in MKS Instruments during the third quarter worth $50,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in MKS Instruments by 65.7% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 31,849 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $3,462,000 after buying an additional 12,628 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 26.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 23,311 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $2,626,000 after buying an additional 4,846 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup raised MKS Instruments from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Benchmark reduced their price target on shares of 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 lowered their target price 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. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of MKS Instruments in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $140.08.

Insider Activity at MKS Instruments

In other news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total value of $25,426.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,607,324.64. The trade was 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 Stock Performance

NASDAQ MKSI traded up $5.05 on Wednesday, reaching $67.91. The stock had a trading volume of 1,801,839 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,026,628. 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 has a market cap of $4.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.81. The business's 50-day moving average price is $81.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $99.98. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.84 and a 12-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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. MKS Instruments's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.43%.

About MKS Instruments

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.