Retirement Systems of Alabama Boosts Stake in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 0.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 157,930 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.23% of MKS Instruments worth $16,486,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Verity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of MKS Instruments in the 4th quarter worth approximately $338,000. Trust Point Inc. purchased a new position in MKS Instruments during the 4th quarter valued at about $466,000. Highland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in MKS Instruments in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,258,000. Stonegate Investment Group LLC increased its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 2,411 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 58.1% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 15,613 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,630,000 after buying an additional 5,739 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.80, for a total transaction of $34,440.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,146,048.40. The trade was a 2.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.41, for a total value of $31,187.75. Following the sale, the director now owns 17,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,002,707.19. This represents a 1.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $142.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $156.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on MKS Instruments from $143.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Four equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $141.75.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

MKSI opened at $111.94 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $111.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.08. The company has a market capitalization of $7.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 248.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.66. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 1-year low of $97.54 and a 1-year high of $147.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 3.42 and a quick ratio of 2.21.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.27. MKS Instruments had a net margin of 0.90% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The business had revenue of $896.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $874.29 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.46 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.