Andra AP fonden Boosts Position in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Andra AP fonden grew its holdings in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 212.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,595 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,928 shares during the period. Andra AP fonden’s holdings in MKS were worth $1,806,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. acquired a new position in MKS during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of MKS by 74.5% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 260 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of MKS during the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in shares of MKS in the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in shares of MKS in the second quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

MKS Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of MKSI opened at $244.46 on Monday. MKS Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.84 and a 52-week high of $269.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $214.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $162.09. The stock has a market cap of $16.44 billion, a PE ratio of 55.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.93.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. MKS had a net margin of 7.53% and a return on equity of 20.85%. MKS’s quarterly revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.15 earnings per share. MKS has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.720-2.280 EPS. Research analysts forecast that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This is a positive change from MKS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. MKS’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MKSI. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of MKS from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on shares of MKS from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Bank of America raised their target price on MKS from $215.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on MKS from $210.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Benchmark boosted their price objective on MKS from $135.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $273.46.

Insider Transactions at MKS

In related news, CEO John Tseng-Chung Lee sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.77, for a total transaction of $7,703,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 154,696 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,721,291.92. This trade represents a 16.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gerald G. Colella sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.97, for a total transaction of $2,539,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 40,017 shares in the company, valued at $10,163,117.49. The trade was a 19.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 63,595 shares of company stock valued at $16,183,893 in the last three months. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About MKS

MKS Instruments, Inc (NASDAQ: MKSI) designs, manufactures and markets technology solutions that enable advanced processes in a variety of high‐technology and industrial markets. The company’s core offerings include vacuum and gas delivery systems, pressure and flow measurement instruments, optical metrology tools, photonics subsystems and critical components for manufacturing processes. These products support the precise control and monitoring needs of semiconductor, industrial manufacturing, life and health sciences, and research applications.

The company’s product portfolio features mass flow controllers, pressure transducers, vacuum gauges, gas purity monitors, laser-based metrology systems and photonic devices such as lasers and detectors.