Reviewing MKS (MKSI) and Its Peers

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) is one of 221 publicly-traded companies in the “Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment” industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its peers? We will compare MKS to related companies based on the strength of its institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability and valuation.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for MKS and its peers, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
MKS	1	2	11	1	2.80
MKS Competitors	3505	12358	25782	999	2.57

MKS currently has a consensus price target of $366.77, suggesting a potential upside of 90.76%. As a group, “Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment” companies have a potential upside of 52.95%. Given MKS’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe MKS is more favorable than its peers.

Volatility & Risk

MKS has a beta of 2.14, suggesting that its stock price is 114% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, MKS’s peers have a beta of 2.80, suggesting that their average stock price is 180% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares MKS and its peers revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
MKS	$4.77 billion	$295.00 million	22.81
MKS Competitors	$9.84 billion	$2.53 billion	8.24

MKS’s peers have higher revenue and earnings than MKS. MKS is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

99.8% of MKS shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 54.8% of shares of all “Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment” companies are owned by institutional investors. 0.6% of MKS shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 11.5% of shares of all “Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment” companies are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares MKS and its peers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
MKS	12.64%	28.77%	9.51%
MKS Competitors	-1,267.00%	-126.31%	-3.96%

Dividends

MKS pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. MKS pays out 11.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment” companies pay a dividend yield of 1.0% and pay out 29.7% of their earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

MKS beats its peers on 10 of the 15 factors compared.

About MKS

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. The VSD segment provides foundational technology solutions, including pressure measurement and control, flow measurement and control, gas and vapor delivery, gas composition analysis, electronic control technology, reactive gas generation and delivery, power generation and delivery, and vacuum technology. The PSD segment offers range of solutions, which include lasers, beam measurement and profiling, precision motion control, vibration isolation systems, photonics instruments, temperature sensing, opto-mechanical components, optical elements, systems for flexible PCB laser processing, and laser-based systems, as well as high density interconnect PCB and package manufacturing. The MSD segment develops, process, and manufactures technologies comprising advanced surface modification, electroless and electrolytic plating, and surface finishing for chemistry, equipment, software, and services markets, as well as high-technology applications. In addition, the company sells its products and services through direct sales, network of independent distributors, and sales representatives, as well as websites, including product catalogs. The company was incorporated in 1961 and is headquartered in Andover, Massachusetts.