Mizuho Markets Americas LLC Reduces Stake in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Mizuho Markets Americas LLC decreased its stake in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 81.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 56,281 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 248,550 shares during the period. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC’s holdings in MKS were worth $8,994,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in MKS during the 4th quarter worth about $5,032,000. Mizuho Markets Cayman LP purchased a new stake in MKS during the 4th quarter worth about $27,965,000. Pinnbrook Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in MKS during the 4th quarter worth about $8,837,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. purchased a new stake in MKS during the 4th quarter worth about $246,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in MKS by 560.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

MKS Price Performance

Shares of MKS stock opened at $320.62 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.65 billion, a PE ratio of 67.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.98. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $266.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $218.17. MKS Inc. has a 12 month low of $80.22 and a 12 month high of $326.83.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.05 billion. MKS had a return on equity of 21.49% and a net margin of 8.06%.The company’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.71 EPS. MKS has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.600-3.200 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that MKS Inc. will post 11.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MKS Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. MKS’s dividend payout ratio is 20.92%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Eric Robert Taranto sold 4,568 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.52, for a total transaction of $1,007,335.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 15,445 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,405,931.40. This represents a 22.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Peter Cannone III sold 1,350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.40, for a total value of $409,590.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 7,794 shares in the company, valued at $2,364,699.60. This trade represents a 14.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 23,313 shares of company stock worth $6,253,264. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MKSI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp upped their target price on MKS from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MKS in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on MKS from $300.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered MKS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “sell” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of MKS in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $318.77.

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.