Romano Brothers AND Company Sells 250 Shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Romano Brothers AND Company decreased its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 10.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,232 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 250 shares during the quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in MKS Instruments were worth $297,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in MKS Instruments by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 29,144 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $2,522,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its stake in 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 worth $628,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MKS Instruments during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Yousif Capital Management LLC raised its position in MKS Instruments by 0.7% during the 4th 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 purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MKS Instruments in the 1st quarter worth $26,000. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on MKSI. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $142.00 price objective on shares of MKS Instruments in a report on Friday, May 10th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of MKS Instruments from $145.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. KeyCorp increased their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS Instruments

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 250 shares of MKS Instruments stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.00, for a total transaction of $33,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,862 shares in the company, valued at $2,242,646. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

MKS Instruments Price Performance

Shares of MKSI stock opened at $130.58 on Friday. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 12-month low of $63.44 and a 12-month high of $139.20. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $127.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $119.30. 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 (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.43. The company had revenue of $868.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.94 million. MKS Instruments had a positive return on equity of 13.90% and a negative net margin of 48.24%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.48 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 24th. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio is presently -3.30%.

About MKS Instruments

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.