MKS Inc. $MKSI is Polaris Capital Management LLC's 6th Largest Position

Key Points

• Polaris Capital cut its stake by 33.9%, selling 136,200 shares to hold 265,100 shares of MKS (about $42.4M), which is now its 6th-largest position and represents 3.5% of the fund's portfolio.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $280.77, while several brokers have raised targets into the ~$300–$320 range.
• Company insiders have been net sellers recently — including the CEO and a director — with insiders selling 68,503 shares worth about $17.29M in the last quarter (insiders now own 0.57% of shares).

Polaris Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 33.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 265,100 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 136,200 shares during the quarter. MKS makes up 3.5% of Polaris Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Polaris Capital Management LLC owned 0.39% of MKS worth $42,363,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MKSI. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in MKS in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. bought a new position in MKS in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in MKS in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new position in MKS in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MKSI. Mizuho set a $320.00 price objective on MKS in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on MKS from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of MKS in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of MKS in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on MKS from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. One investment analyst has 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $280.77.

MKS Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ MKSI opened at $280.98 on Friday. MKS Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.87 and a 52 week high of $294.05. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $245.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $197.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The company has a market cap of $18.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.90.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. MKS had a return on equity of 20.85% and a net margin of 7.53%.The firm'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 business earned $2.15 EPS. MKS has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.720-2.280 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that MKS Inc. will post 9.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is a boost from MKS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. MKS's dividend payout ratio is 22.88%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gerald G. Colella sold 10,000 shares of MKS stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.97, for a total transaction of $2,539,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 40,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,163,117.49. This trade represents a 19.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO John Tseng-Chung Lee sold 30,000 shares of MKS stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.77, for a total value of $7,703,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 154,696 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $39,721,291.92. This trade represents a 16.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 68,503 shares of company stock worth $17,288,099. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

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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