MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $140.08.

MKSI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup upgraded MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of MKS Instruments stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total value of $25,426.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,607,324.64. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $836,240.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 60,017 shares in the company, valued at $6,273,577.01. This trade represents a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,525,037 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $265,874,000 after buying an additional 237,979 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 3,444.0% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 300,711 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $31,391,000 after acquiring an additional 292,226 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 772.7% during the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 61,447 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $6,481,000 after purchasing an additional 54,406 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 25.5% in the fourth quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 35,069 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $3,650,000 after purchasing an additional 7,136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group purchased a new stake in MKS Instruments in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,480,000. 99.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MKS Instruments Stock Performance

Shares of MKSI opened at $63.72 on Friday. MKS Instruments has a one year low of $54.84 and a one year high of $147.40. The company has a market cap of $4.30 billion, a PE ratio of 22.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.81. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $83.71 and a 200-day moving average of $100.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 3.19 and a quick ratio of 2.04.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.23. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 5.30%. On average, equities research analysts predict that MKS Instruments will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.38%. MKS Instruments’s payout ratio is 31.43%.

MKS Instruments 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.