MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) Earns Sell Rating from Analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Free Report) in a research note published on Thursday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a sell rating and a $90.00 price objective on the scientific and technical instruments company's stock.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of MKS from $93.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on shares of MKS from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded MKS from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $110.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on MKS from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $118.89.

MKS Price Performance

MKSI traded down $0.55 during trading on Thursday, reaching $106.45. 654,728 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,052,868. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 3.11. MKS has a 12-month low of $54.84 and a 12-month high of $145.59. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $91.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $92.05. The company has a market cap of $7.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.78, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.88.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.29. MKS had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 20.67%. The business had revenue of $936.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $913.59 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.18 EPS. The company's revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that MKS will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

MKS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. MKS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS

In other news, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,000 shares of MKS stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $210,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,159,955. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of MKS

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MKSI. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of MKS by 41.8% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,250,085 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $260,494,000 after purchasing an additional 958,607 shares during the last quarter. Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of MKS during the fourth quarter worth $97,494,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of MKS during the fourth quarter worth $85,451,000. Channing Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of MKS during the first quarter worth $44,320,000. Finally, Madison Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of MKS by 52.9% in the first quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC now owns 1,428,143 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $114,466,000 after acquiring an additional 494,207 shares in the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About MKS

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.