Securian Asset Management Inc. Decreases Stock Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Securian Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,087 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 145 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $531,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKSI. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 7.3% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 444,333 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $48,303,000 after acquiring an additional 30,216 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in MKS Instruments by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,525,037 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $265,874,000 after purchasing an additional 237,979 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased 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 purchasing an additional 292,226 shares during the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 25.5% in the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 35,069 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $3,650,000 after purchasing an additional 7,136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of MKS Instruments during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $868,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MKSI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised shares of MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on MKS Instruments in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Three 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MKS Instruments news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total transaction of $836,240.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 60,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,273,577.01. The trade was a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total transaction of $25,426.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,607,324.64. This represents a 1.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MKSI opened at $88.91 on Tuesday. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 12-month low of $76.37 and a 12-month high of $147.40. The company has a market cap of $5.99 billion, a PE ratio of 31.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.75. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $103.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $106.84. The company has a current ratio of 3.19, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 EPS for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.