Shellback Capital LP Acquires New Position in MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Shellback Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 264,517 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,541,000. MKS Instruments makes up 2.5% of Shellback Capital LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Shellback Capital LP owned approximately 0.39% of MKS Instruments at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKSI. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 180,266 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $18,544,000 after purchasing an additional 9,962 shares during the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of MKS Instruments during the first quarter worth $918,000. Crestline Management LP acquired a new position in shares of MKS Instruments during the fourth quarter worth $3,498,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 78,093 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $10,387,000 after acquiring an additional 5,184 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 39,045 shares in the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America began coverage on MKS Instruments in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $160.00 target price for the company. KeyCorp upped their price objective on MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $129.00 target price on the stock. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $142.00 price target on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of MKS Instruments in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MKS Instruments news, EVP John Edward Williams sold 1,800 shares of MKS Instruments stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.71, for a total value of $213,678.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 13 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,543.23. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total transaction of $30,865.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 10,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,300,404.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Edward Williams sold 1,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.71, for a total value of $213,678.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,543.23. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,325 shares of company stock worth $276,435. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

Shares of MKS Instruments stock opened at $113.28 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.24, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a current ratio of 3.58, a quick ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $114.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $123.27. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 1-year low of $63.44 and a 1-year high of $147.40.

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

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio is presently -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.