MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.43 EPS

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI - Get Free Report) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.43, Briefing.com reports. MKS Instruments had a positive return on equity of 9.95% and a negative net margin of 50.80%. The company had revenue of $868.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.94 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.48 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. MKS Instruments updated its Q2 guidance to $0.67-1.19 EPS and its Q2 2024 guidance to 0.670-1.190 EPS.

MKS Instruments Stock Up 3.4 %

Shares of MKSI stock traded up $4.24 on Thursday, hitting $127.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 875,894 shares, compared to its average volume of 635,280. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 3.18 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.48, a P/E/G ratio of 4.01 and a beta of 1.69. MKS Instruments has a fifty-two week low of $63.44 and a fifty-two week high of $135.51. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $123.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $105.06.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 24th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. MKS Instruments's dividend payout ratio is currently -3.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS Instruments

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.00, for a total transaction of $33,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,242,646. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.00, for a total value of $33,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,862 shares in the company, valued at $2,242,646. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Seth H. Bagshaw sold 32,865 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.28, for a total transaction of $4,051,597.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 1 shares in the company, valued at $123.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 50,776 shares of company stock worth $6,226,307 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on MKSI shares. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on MKS Instruments from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. TheStreet upgraded shares of MKS Instruments from a "d+" rating to a "c-" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. StockNews.com raised shares of MKS Instruments from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $128.75.

About MKS Instruments

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.