MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $126.01 and last traded at $127.14, with a volume of 121939 shares. The stock had previously closed at $119.44.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several research firms recently issued reports on MKSI. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of MKS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of MKS from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of MKS from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MKS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, MKS has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $119.80.
View Our Latest Analysis on MKSI
MKS Stock Down 0.6%
The company has a quick ratio of 1.88, a current ratio of 2.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $104.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.08. The company has a market cap of $8.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.94.
MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.16. MKS had a return on equity of 20.65% and a net margin of 7.11%.The firm had revenue of $973.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $931.05 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.53 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MKS Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.
MKS Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. MKS's payout ratio is presently 22.34%.
Insider Activity
In other MKS news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.10, for a total value of $27,630.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 11,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,092,490.20. This represents a 2.47% 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 Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of MKS stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.85, for a total transaction of $29,955.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 19,263 shares in the company, valued at $1,923,410.55. This represents a 1.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,600 shares of company stock worth $917,585 over the last 90 days. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in MKS during the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Optimum Investment Advisors boosted its stake in MKS by 66.7% in the 1st quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Steph & Co. purchased a new position in MKS during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new stake in MKS during the 2nd quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of MKS by 89.3% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 581 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company's stock.
MKS Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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