Short Interest in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Drops By 24.2%

MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,850,000 shares, a drop of 24.2% from the September 15th total of 2,440,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 940,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.0 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp boosted their target price on MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $142.00 price objective on shares of MKS Instruments in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Mizuho raised shares of MKS Instruments to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $153.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Monday, August 5th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $155.00 price objective on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $141.09.

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS Instruments

In other MKS Instruments news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $30,865.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 10,533 shares in the company, valued at $1,300,404.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.97, for a total value of $31,891.75. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,934 shares in the company, valued at $2,079,805.98. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total transaction of $30,865.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,300,404.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,575 shares of company stock valued at $303,660. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MKS Instruments

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MKSI. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MKS Instruments in the first quarter valued at approximately $918,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 7.1% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 78,093 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $10,387,000 after acquiring an additional 5,184 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in MKS Instruments by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,892,941 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $709,077,000 after purchasing an additional 39,045 shares during the period. Comerica Bank grew its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 29.5% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 111,923 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $14,886,000 after buying an additional 25,520 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 7.6% during the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 141,187 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $18,436,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MKSI traded down $8.66 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $103.97. The stock had a trading volume of 1,621,308 shares, compared to its average volume of 820,618. MKS Instruments has a twelve month low of $63.44 and a twelve month high of $147.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.58 and a quick ratio of 2.31. The business’s fifty day moving average is $111.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $121.70. The company has a market cap of $6.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.93, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.63.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.51. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 0.25%. The company had revenue of $887.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $866.38 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.32 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that MKS Instruments will post 5.6 EPS for the current year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio is -3.30%.

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.