MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Shares Acquired by Carlyle Group Inc.

Carlyle Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI – Get Rating) by 150.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,482,732 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,089,639 shares during the period. MKS Instruments makes up about 20.9% of Carlyle Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Carlyle Group Inc. owned 12.75% of MKS Instruments worth $718,742,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MKSI. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 16.7% in the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 7,133 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,070,000 after acquiring an additional 1,020 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 1.9% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 14,882 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,232,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC bought a new position in shares of MKS Instruments in the first quarter valued at approximately $342,000. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of MKS Instruments in the first quarter valued at approximately $345,000. Finally, AlphaCrest Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MKS Instruments in the first quarter valued at approximately $320,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS Instruments

In other MKS Instruments news, major shareholder Carlyle Partners Vi Cayman Hol sold 2,000,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.12, for a total transaction of $172,240,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,482,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $558,292,879.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MKSI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup raised their target price on MKS Instruments from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on MKS Instruments from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Benchmark decreased their target price on MKS Instruments from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on MKS Instruments from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 target price (up from $110.00) on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Tuesday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $114.36.

MKS Instruments Price Performance

NASDAQ:MKSI traded up $3.90 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $96.90. 295,840 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 632,062. The firm has a market cap of $6.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.05 and a beta of 1.55. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.77 and a 52 week high of $125.56. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $84.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $88.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 3.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 3rd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.28) by $0.76. The company had revenue of $794.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $769.85 million. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 11.77% and a net margin of 4.11%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.71 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 3.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 26th. MKS Instruments’s payout ratio is 34.11%.

MKS Instruments Company Profile

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MKS Instruments, Inc provides instruments, systems, subsystems and process control solutions to measure, control, power, monitor, and analyze parameters of manufacturing processes to improve process performance and productivity for its customers. It operates through the following segments: Vacuum & Analysis, Light & Motion and Equipment & Solutions.