MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) Stock Price Target Lowered at Citigroup

Key Points

• Citigroup cut its MKS price target from $430 to $350 but maintained a Buy rating; the new target implies about 82% upside from the stock’s cited price.
• MKS reported quarterly EPS of $4.18 and revenue of $1.41 billion, beating analyst estimates; revenue rose 43% year over year.
• The board authorized up to $500 million in share repurchases, covering as much as 3.6% of outstanding shares.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by analysts at Citigroup from $430.00 to $350.00 in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the scientific and technical instruments company's stock. Citigroup's target price suggests a potential upside of 82.04% from the stock's current price.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on MKSI. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of MKS from $345.00 to $330.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on shares of MKS from $390.00 to $300.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of MKS from $365.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of MKS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of MKS from $360.00 to $330.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MKS presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $353.43.

MKS Price Performance

NASDAQ:MKSI traded up $15.45 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $192.27. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,616,023 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,393,944. The business's 50-day moving average is $241.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $277.11. The company has a market capitalization of $13.00 billion, a PE ratio of 22.81, a PEG ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 2.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.14. MKS has a 52-week low of $134.74 and a 52-week high of $447.62.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $4.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.55. MKS had a net margin of 12.64% and a return on equity of 29.90%. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.93 EPS. The business's revenue was up 43.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that MKS will post 13.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MKS declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, November 4th that permits the company to repurchase $500 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the scientific and technical instruments company to purchase up to 3.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Share buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other MKS news, CEO John Tseng-Chung Lee sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.01, for a total transaction of $3,020,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,703,699.76. This trade represents a 6.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of MKS stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.96, for a total transaction of $75,288.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,845 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,729,341.20. The trade was a 1.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in MKS in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Allied Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in MKS in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new stake in MKS in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in MKS in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in MKS by 47.5% in the 2nd quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 28 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: MKS reported Q3 adjusted EPS of $4.18, above the roughly $3.63 consensus, and revenue of $1.41 billion, up 43% year over year and ahead of estimates. The company also highlighted record adjusted EBITDA. Q3 earnings beat estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management pointed to AI-fueled semiconductor demand, capacity expansion and improving margins, with strong Q4 guidance: adjusted EPS of $4.62–$5.38. These trends support expectations for continued growth into 2027. Earnings call highlights
• Positive Sentiment: The board authorized up to $500 million in share repurchases, a program that could reduce the share count and signal confidence in the business. Buyback and dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: MKS also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share.
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo lowered its price target from $285 to $195 and assigned an “equal weight” rating, reflecting a more cautious view after the recent share-price decline. Wells Fargo rating

MKS Company Profile

MKS Instruments, Inc NASDAQ: MKSI develops technologies that enable precision control and measurement in manufacturing and research environments. The company provides instruments, components, systems and process-control solutions used to measure and control pressure, flow, vacuum, gas delivery, temperature and other critical production conditions.

Its product portfolio includes vacuum solutions, pressure and flow-control instruments, gas and vapor delivery systems, plasma and reactive-gas technologies, power delivery systems, process-monitoring equipment, analytical instruments and materials-characterization tools.

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