American International Group Inc. Sells 3,635 Shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

American International Group Inc. cut its stake in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 84,946 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 3,635 shares during the period. American International Group Inc.’s holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $8,738,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 29,144 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,522,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 2.3% in the third quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 7,261 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $628,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 29,837 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $3,069,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 0.4% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 55,330 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $4,789,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 6,637 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $683,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.41, for a total value of $35,587.75. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,356,426.69. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

MKS Instruments Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of MKS Instruments stock opened at $137.16 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.14, a PEG ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 3.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 12-month low of $63.44 and a 12-month high of $139.20. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $125.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $116.50.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $868.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $848.94 million. MKS Instruments had a negative net margin of 48.24% and a positive return on equity of 13.90%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.48 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 24th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. MKS Instruments’s payout ratio is currently -3.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $142.00 price target on shares of MKS Instruments in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $145.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.00.

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.