Bowie Capital Management LLC Invests $14.84 Million in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Key Points

• Bowie Capital Management opened a new position in MKS Inc., buying 64,593 shares valued at about $14.84 million, making MKS its 22nd-largest holding.
• Several analysts remain upbeat on MKS, with recent target price increases from firms like Mizuho and Cantor Fitzgerald; the stock currently carries an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a $380 average price target.
• MKS reported solid quarterly results, posting $2.30 EPS on $1.08 billion in revenue, both above expectations, while insiders also sold shares in recent months, including sizable sales by two directors.

Bowie Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 64,593 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $14,844,000. MKS makes up about 0.5% of Bowie Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Bowie Capital Management LLC owned 0.10% of MKS at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of MKS by 1.1% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,274 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $982,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of MKS by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 390 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in MKS by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 530 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in MKS by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 4,335 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $693,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC raised its stake in MKS by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 15,028 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $2,401,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MKSI. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of MKS from $400.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $380.00 target price on shares of MKS in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on shares of MKS from $400.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered MKS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on MKS in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $453.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $380.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Joseph B. Donahue sold 2,100 shares of MKS stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.95, for a total value of $688,695.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 10,033 shares in the company, valued at $3,290,322.35. This trade represents a 17.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald G. Colella sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.40, for a total transaction of $6,668,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 20,017 shares in the company, valued at $6,673,667.80. The trade was a 49.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 53,949 shares of company stock valued at $17,446,108. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

MKS Stock Down 0.2%

MKSI stock opened at $344.84 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $23.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 72.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $350.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $279.81. MKS Inc. has a 1-year low of $88.49 and a 1-year high of $447.62.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.05 billion. MKS had a return on equity of 21.49% and a net margin of 8.06%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.71 EPS. MKS has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.600-3.200 EPS. Analysts expect that MKS Inc. will post 11.77 EPS for the current year.

MKS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 3rd. MKS's dividend payout ratio is 20.92%.

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.

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