Brokerages Set MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Price Target at $119.80

MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $119.80.

Several research firms have commented on MKSI. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of MKS in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of MKS in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS

In other MKS news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.10, for a total value of $27,630.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 11,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,092,490.20. This represents a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $210,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,159,955. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new position in shares of MKS in the second quarter worth about $39,000. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of MKS by 66.7% in the first quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Steph & Co. acquired a new position in shares of MKS in the second quarter worth about $42,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in shares of MKS in the second quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of MKS by 89.3% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 581 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

MKS Price Performance

Shares of MKSI opened at $107.52 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.22 billion, a PE ratio of 27.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.99 and a quick ratio of 1.88. MKS has a 1-year low of $54.84 and a 1-year high of $125.33. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $101.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $89.72.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $973.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $931.05 million. MKS had a net margin of 7.11% and a return on equity of 20.65%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.53 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that MKS will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

MKS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 25th. MKS’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.34%.

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.