Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft Upgrades MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) to “Buy”

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) was upgraded by analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $110.00 target price on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft’s price target points to a potential upside of 29.17% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on MKSI. Benchmark dropped their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on MKS Instruments from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on MKS Instruments from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on MKS Instruments from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $140.00 price target on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MKS Instruments has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.33.

MKS Instruments Stock Down 4.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:MKSI opened at $85.16 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.58. MKS Instruments has a 52 week low of $54.84 and a 52 week high of $147.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 3.19. The company has a market cap of $5.74 billion, a PE ratio of 30.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.80.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $936.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $913.59 million. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 5.30%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.18 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that MKS Instruments will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total value of $25,426.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,607,324.64. This trade represents a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MKS Instruments

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in MKS Instruments 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 worth $260,494,000 after purchasing an additional 958,607 shares in the last quarter. Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of MKS Instruments in the 4th quarter valued at $97,494,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of MKS Instruments during the 4th quarter valued at $85,451,000. Channing Capital Management LLC bought a new position in MKS Instruments during the first quarter worth $44,320,000. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its holdings in MKS Instruments by 108.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,019,134 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $110,789,000 after purchasing an additional 530,620 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

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.