Wells Fargo & Company Increases MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) Price Target to $255.00

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) had its price target upped by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $210.00 to $255.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would indicate a potential downside of 1.65% from the company’s current price.

MKSI has been the topic of a number of other research reports. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on MKS from $200.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MKS in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on MKS from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on MKS from $200.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on MKS from $215.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $273.46.

MKS Trading Up 4.1%

Shares of MKSI stock opened at $259.27 on Thursday. MKS has a 1 year low of $54.84 and a 1 year high of $269.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.42 billion, a PE ratio of 59.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.95. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $204.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $155.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 2.71.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MKS news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of MKS stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.81, for a total transaction of $47,643.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,011,514.03. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of MKS

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in MKS during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of MKS by 560.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of MKS by 616.7% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 172 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. acquired a new stake in MKS in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in MKS by 74.5% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 260 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More MKS News

Here are the key news stories impacting MKS this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 revenue beat and segment strength — MKS reported $1.03B in Q4 revenue (+10% YoY) with Electronics & Packaging up ~19%, showing demand strength in key end markets that supports higher earnings power. MKS Inc. (MKSI) Reports $1.03B Q4 2025 Revenue
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target to $305 and keeps an overweight rating — a bullish analyst move that likely boosted investor confidence and helped lift the stock. JPMorgan raises MKSI price target
• Positive Sentiment: Needham increased its target to $300 and maintains a buy rating — another bullish signal adding upward pressure. Needham raises MKSI price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its target to $255 but kept an equal‑weight rating — a modestly constructive update, though its PT sits near the stock price and signals limited upside. Wells Fargo raises MKSI price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings call transcript is available for detail seekers — useful for judging management tone on orders, backlog and guidance. MKS Q4 2025 earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Small EPS miss — Q4 EPS $2.47 vs. consensus $2.51 (miss by $0.04). The slight miss tempered the rally and left some investors wanting a larger beat.
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed/contrarian analyst views: Goldman Sachs raised its price target (to $200) but maintains a sell rating, signaling that some firms still see meaningful downside — this contributes to mixed market reaction. Goldman raises PT but keeps sell rating
• Negative Sentiment: Investor disappointment / short‑term selling pressure — stories about the stock gapping down and falling after the print reflect that some traders sought a larger beat, creating intraday swings despite underlying revenue strength. MKS shares gap down following weak earnings MKS stock falls; investors wanted larger beat

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.