BNP Paribas Financial Markets Has $9.70 Million Holdings in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 26.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 92,932 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,244 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $9,701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MKSI. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 190,128 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $19,847,000 after purchasing an additional 12,942 shares during the last quarter. AXA S.A. lifted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 141.9% during the 4th quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 33,279 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $3,474,000 after purchasing an additional 19,521 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 114.7% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 4,911 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $513,000 after purchasing an additional 2,624 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank lifted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 25,873 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,701,000 after purchasing an additional 2,313 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 54.0% during the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 20,411 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,131,000 after purchasing an additional 7,154 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at MKS Instruments

In other MKS Instruments news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of MKS Instruments stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total value of $25,426.50. Following the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of MKS Instruments stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $836,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 60,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,273,577.01. This represents a 11.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

MKS Instruments Stock Up 3.7%

MKSI stock opened at $80.14 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $5.41 billion, a PE ratio of 28.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.80. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.14. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 52 week low of $54.84 and a 52 week high of $147.40. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 3.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MKSI has been the subject of several research reports. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on MKS Instruments from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark dropped their target price on MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on MKS Instruments from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. 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 MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.17.

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.