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

Shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $273.4615.

MKSI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of MKS in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of MKS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 3rd. Mizuho set a $320.00 price objective on MKS in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Citigroup lifted their target price on MKS from $185.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on MKS from $215.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd.

MKS Stock Up 4.0%

MKSI opened at $218.36 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $14.68 billion, a PE ratio of 49.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.93. MKS has a twelve month low of $54.84 and a twelve month high of $269.91. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $222.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $167.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced 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 firm had revenue of $1.03 billion for 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 revenue was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.15 EPS. MKS has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.720-2.280 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that MKS will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from MKS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. MKS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.88%.

Insider Transactions at MKS

In other MKS news, EVP Kathleen Flaherty Burke sold 4,254 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $1,063,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 53,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,448,500. The trade was a 7.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Eric Robert Taranto sold 4,568 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.52, for a total value of $1,007,335.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 15,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,405,931.40. This represents a 22.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 68,163 shares of company stock worth $17,215,417 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MKS

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in shares of MKS in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in MKS by 560.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in MKS by 616.7% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 172 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. purchased a new stake in MKS during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of MKS by 74.5% in 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 period. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.