MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) Plans $0.22 Quarterly Dividend

MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 8th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be paid a dividend of 0.22 per share by the scientific and technical instruments company on Friday, June 7th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 24th.

MKS Instruments has raised its dividend payment by an average of 3.2% per year over the last three years. MKS Instruments has a dividend payout ratio of 12.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect MKS Instruments to earn $6.52 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.88 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 13.5%.

MKS Instruments Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MKSI traded up $4.81 during trading on Thursday, reaching $128.19. The stock had a trading volume of 241,935 shares, compared to its average volume of 628,119. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.60 billion, a PE ratio of -4.48, a P/E/G ratio of 4.01 and a beta of 1.69. MKS Instruments has a 52 week low of $63.44 and a 52 week high of $135.51. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $123.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 3.18 and a quick ratio of 2.01.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. 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. The business had revenue of $868.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $848.94 million. MKS Instruments had a positive return on equity of 9.95% and a negative net margin of 50.80%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that MKS Instruments will post 4.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS Instruments

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.00, for a total value of $33,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,242,646. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 250 shares of MKS Instruments 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 transaction, the director now owns 16,862 shares in the company, valued at $2,242,646. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 10,000 shares of MKS Instruments stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $1,200,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 68,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,162,040. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 50,776 shares of company stock worth $6,226,307. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on MKSI. StockNews.com raised MKS Instruments from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $85.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on MKS Instruments from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $128.75.

MKS Instruments Company Profile

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.