Main Management ETF Advisors LLC Sells 1,152 Shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Main Management ETF Advisors LLC cut its position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 12,816 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 1,152 shares during the quarter. Main Management ETF Advisors LLC’s holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $1,338,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in MKS Instruments by 108.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,019,134 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $110,789,000 after purchasing an additional 530,620 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings 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. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in MKS Instruments during the 4th quarter worth about $295,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in MKS Instruments by 3,444.0% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 300,711 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $31,391,000 after acquiring an additional 292,226 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its position in MKS Instruments by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 246,377 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $25,719,000 after acquiring an additional 46,859 shares in the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MKS Instruments Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of NASDAQ MKSI opened at $93.32 on Wednesday. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.84 and a 52-week high of $147.40. 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 $6.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.80. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $75.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.05.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.29. MKS Instruments had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 18.94%. The company had revenue of $936.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $913.59 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.18 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. MKS Instruments’s payout ratio is 26.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MKSI. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Benchmark dropped their target price on MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on MKS Instruments from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MKS Instruments news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of MKS Instruments 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 sale, the director now owns 60,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,273,577.01. This trade represents a 11.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,607,324.64. This trade represents a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

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.