Magnetar Financial LLC Sells 24,893 Shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Magnetar Financial LLC lowered its stake in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 72.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,688 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 24,893 shares during the quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $1,011,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKSI. Citigroup Inc. lifted its position in MKS Instruments by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 444,333 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $48,303,000 after purchasing an additional 30,216 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position 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 during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position 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 valued at $31,391,000 after purchasing an additional 292,226 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its position in MKS Instruments by 25.5% during 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 during the period. Finally, Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in MKS Instruments during the 3rd quarter valued at about $868,000. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at MKS Instruments

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

MKS Instruments Price Performance

Shares of MKSI opened at $88.17 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.75. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a twelve month low of $76.37 and a twelve month high of $147.40. The company has a 50 day moving average of $102.08 and a 200-day moving average of $106.18. 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 issued 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 net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 18.94%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Benchmark cut their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.