Readystate Asset Management LP Reduces Stock Holdings in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Readystate Asset Management LP cut its position in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 14.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 55,079 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 9,073 shares during the period. Readystate Asset Management LP owned approximately 0.08% of MKS worth $6,817,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of MKS by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 267,421 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $21,434,000 after buying an additional 9,170 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its stake in MKS by 139.1% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,154 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $611,000 after acquiring an additional 3,580 shares during the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in MKS in the second quarter valued at $527,000. Ethic Inc. raised its position in MKS by 24.8% in the second quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 22,297 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,234,000 after purchasing an additional 4,434 shares during the period. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of MKS in the 2nd quarter valued at $336,000. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key MKS News

Here are the key news stories impacting MKS this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 revenue and EPS expanded year-over-year — revenue of ~$1.03B (+~10.5% YoY) and reported EPS improved versus the prior year, showing underlying demand/price leverage. Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Management completed debt refinancing and raised the dividend, which reshapes the company’s debt profile and returns more capital to shareholders — a structural positive for yield‑seeking and income investors. MKS Refinancing Article
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street support remains strong — multiple recent buy/overweight ratings and above‑median price targets provide analyst backing that can support the stock going forward. Analyst Coverage/Targets
• Neutral Sentiment: Company issued Q1 FY2026 guidance (EPS $1.72–2.28; revenue $1.0B–1.1B). The range overlaps consensus but the midpoint is slightly below some estimates — guidance provides a roadmap but is conservative enough to leave room for analyst revisions. Guidance & Metrics
• Neutral Sentiment: Share price momentum: stock has been trading near highs/all‑time levels ahead of and after the release, reflecting strong sentiment but also higher expectations that increase sensitivity to misses. All‑Time High Article
• Negative Sentiment: Certain consensus measures were missed — some outlets/consensus figures showed EPS and/or revenue slightly below expectations (different data sources report small variances), which pressured the stock in after‑hours trading for a time. That divergence between reported figures and certain sell‑side models drove short‑term volatility. Earnings Miss Coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Cash‑flow and balance‑sheet items showed weaknesses: operating cash flow declined year‑over‑year and cash balances were slightly lower; coupled with recent insider selling disclosed in filings, these items can concern some investors focused on cash conversion and insider alignment. Cash Flow & Insider Activity

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho set a $260.00 price objective on MKS in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of MKS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of MKS from $187.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on MKS from $175.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of MKS from $122.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.50.

MKS Trading Up 0.8%

MKSI opened at $262.94 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 2.86. MKS Inc. has a one year low of $54.84 and a one year high of $269.91. The company has a market cap of $17.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 63.82, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.95. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $199.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.44.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.47 earnings per share (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 7.25% and a return on equity of 20.80%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.15 earnings per share. MKS has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.720-2.280 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MKS Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a $0.25 dividend. This is a positive change from MKS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. MKS’s payout ratio is 21.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MKS news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.81, for a total value of $47,643.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,963 shares in the company, valued at $3,011,514.03. This represents a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

MKS Company Profile

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.