MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Saturday morning.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of MKS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on MKS in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $90.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of MKS in a report on Friday, August 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on MKS from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $119.80.

MKS Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MKSI opened at $103.34 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $101.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $89.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 2.99. The firm has a market cap of $6.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.23, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.94. MKS has a 1 year low of $54.84 and a 1 year high of $125.33.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $973.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $931.05 million. MKS had a return on equity of 20.65% and a net margin of 7.11%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.53 EPS. Research analysts forecast that MKS will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MKS Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. MKS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.34%.

Insider Activity at MKS

In other MKS news, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $210,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,159,955. This represents a 8.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.10, for a total transaction of $27,630.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,092,490.20. The trade was a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MKS

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of MKS by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,515,373 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $281,758,000 after buying an additional 173,945 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in MKS by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,388,639 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $271,599,000 after buying an additional 300,356 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of MKS by 41.8% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,250,085 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $260,494,000 after acquiring an additional 958,607 shares during the last quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of MKS by 52.9% during the 1st quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC now owns 1,428,143 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $114,466,000 after purchasing an additional 494,207 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in MKS by 2.9% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,258,108 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $125,025,000 after acquiring an additional 35,065 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

MKS 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.