Magnetar Financial LLC Has $1.01 Million Stock Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Magnetar Financial LLC lowered its position in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 72.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 9,688 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 24,893 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $1,011,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MKSI. Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in MKS Instruments in the fourth quarter valued at about $97,494,000. Barclays PLC raised 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 valued at $110,789,000 after purchasing an additional 530,620 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in MKS Instruments by 3,444.0% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 300,711 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $31,391,000 after purchasing an additional 292,226 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in MKS Instruments in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,312,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in MKS Instruments by 10.4% in the fourth 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at MKS Instruments

In related news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now directly owns 60,017 shares in the company, valued at $6,273,577.01. This represents a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,384 shares in the company, valued at $1,607,324.64. The trade was 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 company insiders.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MKSI opened at $88.17 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $5.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a current ratio of 3.19, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $102.08 and its 200-day moving average is $106.18. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.37 and a 1-year high of $147.40.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $0.23. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 5.30%. Equities research analysts anticipate that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. MKS Instruments’s payout ratio is presently 31.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MKSI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup raised MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Benchmark decreased their target price on 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 decreased their target price on MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.08.

MKS Instruments Company Profile

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.