WCM Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in MKS Inc. $MKSI

WCM Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 33,844 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 3,196 shares during the quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC owned 0.05% of MKS worth $4,134,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. purchased a new position in MKS in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MKS during the third quarter worth $38,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of MKS in the second quarter valued at $39,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new position in MKS in the third quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new position in MKS in the second quarter valued at $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on MKSI. Zacks Research upgraded MKS from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Benchmark upped their target price on shares of MKS from $135.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of MKS from $215.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of MKS from $200.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MKS in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $231.50.

MKS Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MKSI opened at $229.58 on Wednesday. MKS Inc. has a 12 month low of $54.84 and a 12 month high of $246.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 1.81. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $181.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $142.95.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.13. MKS had a return on equity of 20.80% and a net margin of 7.25%.The company had revenue of $988.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $963.87 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.72 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.81, for a total value of $47,643.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 18,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,011,514.03. This represents a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

MKS Profile

MKS Instruments, Inc (NASDAQ: MKSI) designs, manufactures and markets technology solutions that enable advanced processes in a variety of high‐technology and industrial markets. The company’s core offerings include vacuum and gas delivery systems, pressure and flow measurement instruments, optical metrology tools, photonics subsystems and critical components for manufacturing processes. These products support the precise control and monitoring needs of semiconductor, industrial manufacturing, life and health sciences, and research applications.

The company’s product portfolio features mass flow controllers, pressure transducers, vacuum gauges, gas purity monitors, laser-based metrology systems and photonic devices such as lasers and detectors.