MKS Inc. $MKSI Stake Lessened by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama lessened its stake in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 8.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 133,832 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 12,128 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in MKS were worth $35,514,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in MKS by 1,745.1% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 14,632 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $3,969,000 after purchasing an additional 13,839 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of MKS by 69.2% during the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,345 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $357,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the period. CenterBook Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of MKS during the 3rd quarter valued at $6,092,000. Heritage Family Offices LLP acquired a new position in shares of MKS during the 3rd quarter valued at $62,000. Finally, TT International Asset Management LTD increased its position in shares of MKS by 267.8% during the 3rd quarter. TT International Asset Management LTD now owns 4,961 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,316,000 after purchasing an additional 3,612 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MKSI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised MKS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $360.00 target price on MKS in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Mizuho lowered their target price on MKS from $360.00 to $330.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Citigroup lowered their target price on MKS from $430.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on shares of MKS from $390.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $366.77.

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS

In other news, CEO John Tseng-Chung Lee sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.01, for a total transaction of $3,020,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,703,699.76. This trade represents a 6.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of MKS stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.96, for a total value of $75,288.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,845 shares in the company, valued at $4,729,341.20. The trade was a 1.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

MKS Stock Up 0.9%

MKSI stock opened at $213.47 on Wednesday. MKS Inc. has a 12 month low of $134.74 and a 12 month high of $447.62. The firm has a market cap of $14.43 billion, a PE ratio of 25.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 2.14. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $238.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $276.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $4.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. MKS had a net margin of 12.64% and a return on equity of 28.77%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 43.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.93 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that MKS Inc. will post 14.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 25th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 25th. MKS’s dividend payout ratio is 11.86%.

MKS declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, November 4th that authorizes the company to buy back $500 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the scientific and technical instruments company to repurchase up to 3.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

MKS Company Profile

MKS Inc. develops technologies used to manufacture semiconductor devices and other advanced products. Its offerings include instruments, components, subsystems and systems that measure and control pressure, gas flow, gas composition, power and other process conditions. The company also provides laser and photonics technologies, motion-control solutions, and specialty chemicals and plating equipment. These products support semiconductor fabrication and packaging, electronics manufacturing, life sciences and a range of industrial applications.