Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires Shares of 5,928 MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 5,928 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $610,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 692 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 73.5% in the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 295 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Eqis Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Eqis Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,811 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $422,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 140 shares during the period. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. grew its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 7,261 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $628,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MKS Instruments Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MKSI opened at $120.48 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $124.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.21. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a twelve month low of $63.44 and a twelve month high of $135.51. The company has a current ratio of 3.18, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.28. MKS Instruments had a negative net margin of 50.80% and a positive return on equity of 9.95%. The firm had revenue of $893.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $845.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.00 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 4.54 EPS for the current year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio is -3.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.00, for a total value of $33,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,242,646. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other MKS Instruments news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total transaction of $1,100,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 78,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,581,870. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now directly owns 16,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,242,646. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 60,776 shares of company stock valued at $7,326,307. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. StockNews.com raised shares of MKS Instruments from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Benchmark upped their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $85.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.00.

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.