MKS Inc. $MKSI Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC reduced its stake in MKS by 16.2%, selling 93,009 shares and finishing the quarter with 481,168 shares worth about $59.55 million.
• Other institutions largely added or initiated positions—Norges Bank took a new ~$85.4M stake and Frontier, Channing and Rafferty materially increased holdings—while insiders sold a combined 68,163 shares (~$17.2M) last quarter; institutional ownership is 99.79%.
• MKS reported $1.03B in revenue (+10.5% YoY) and $2.47 EPS (missing by $0.04), raised its quarterly dividend to $0.25, and holds a consensus analyst rating of Moderate Buy with an average target of $273.46.

Natixis Advisors LLC lessened its stake in MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) by 16.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 481,168 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 93,009 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned about 0.72% of MKS worth $59,554,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MKSI. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of MKS during the second quarter worth $85,391,000. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC grew its holdings in MKS by 146.4% during the 2nd quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 912,380 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $90,654,000 after purchasing an additional 542,094 shares in the last quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC increased its stake in MKS by 79.3% during the 2nd quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 991,298 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $98,495,000 after buying an additional 438,338 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its stake in MKS by 63.4% during the 2nd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 878,114 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $87,249,000 after buying an additional 340,645 shares during the period. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new position in MKS in the 3rd quarter worth $40,023,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company's stock.

MKS Price Performance

Shares of MKSI stock opened at $218.36 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $222.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $167.48. The firm has a market cap of $14.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.93. MKS Inc. has a 1-year low of $54.84 and a 1-year high of $269.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.71.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.51 by ($0.04). MKS had a net margin of 7.53% and a return on equity of 20.85%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.15 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. MKS has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.720-2.280 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at MKS

In other news, EVP Eric Robert Taranto sold 4,568 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 15,445 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,405,931.40. The trade was a 22.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gerald G. Colella sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.97, for a total value of $2,539,700.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 40,017 shares in the company, valued at $10,163,117.49. This trade represents a 19.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 68,163 shares of company stock worth $17,215,417 over the last quarter. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MKSI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of MKS from $185.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Bank of America lifted their target price on MKS from $215.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of MKS in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on MKS from $210.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on MKS from $200.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $273.46.

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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