Front Row Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Front Row Advisors LLC reduced its stake in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,975 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 176 shares during the quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC’s holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $937,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 68.6% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 263 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of MKS Instruments in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of MKS Instruments during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 58.0% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 433 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in MKS Instruments by 424.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 414 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related 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 value of $836,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 60,017 shares in the company, valued at $6,273,577.01. The trade was a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total value 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. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

MKS Instruments Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of MKS Instruments stock opened at $80.15 on Tuesday. 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $98.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.25. The stock has a market cap of $5.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.63, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.75. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 12-month low of $76.37 and a 12-month high of $147.40.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MKSI. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark dropped their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup upgraded MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, MKS Instruments currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.08.

MKS Instruments 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.