MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Receives $140.08 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $140.08.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MKSI shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Benchmark lowered 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. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on MKS Instruments from $156.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Citigroup raised MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th.

MKS Instruments Price Performance

MKS Instruments stock opened at $84.82 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $100.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $105.66. MKS Instruments has a 12 month low of $76.37 and a 12 month high of $147.40. The company has a market cap of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.29, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a current ratio of 3.19, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.23. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 5.30%. Sell-side analysts forecast that MKS Instruments will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.43%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total transaction of $836,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 60,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,273,577.01. This represents a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total value of $25,426.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,607,324.64. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MKS Instruments

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MKSI. Citigroup Inc. grew its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 7.3% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 444,333 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $48,303,000 after buying an additional 30,216 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in MKS Instruments by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,525,037 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $265,874,000 after acquiring an additional 237,979 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in MKS Instruments by 3,444.0% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 300,711 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $31,391,000 after acquiring an additional 292,226 shares during the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC increased its stake in MKS Instruments by 25.5% in the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 35,069 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $3,650,000 after purchasing an additional 7,136 shares during the period. Finally, Tributary Capital Management LLC lifted its position in MKS Instruments by 65.0% in the fourth quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 8,751 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $914,000 after purchasing an additional 3,447 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

About MKS Instruments

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.