MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) shares gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $324.28, but opened at $347.28. MKS shares last traded at $335.2550, with a volume of 94,657 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on MKSI. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on MKS from $374.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Citigroup upped their target price on MKS from $290.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $265.00 price target on shares of MKS in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MKS in a research report on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of MKS in a report on Friday, May 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MKS currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $380.00.

MKS Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $23.15 billion, a PE ratio of 71.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.93. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $348.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $277.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.30. MKS had a return on equity of 21.49% and a net margin of 8.06%.The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.71 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. MKS has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.600-3.200 EPS. Research analysts forecast that MKS Inc. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at MKS

In related news, CEO John Tseng-Chung Lee sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.48, for a total value of $3,154,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 144,696 shares in the company, valued at $45,648,694.08. This trade represents a 6.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP David Philip Henry sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.50, for a total transaction of $826,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 16,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,400,700.50. The trade was a 13.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 53,949 shares of company stock valued at $17,446,108. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MKS

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of MKS by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 267,421 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $21,434,000 after buying an additional 9,170 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in MKS by 63.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 838 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in MKS by 3,545.6% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 141,267 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $14,036,000 after buying an additional 137,392 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC bought a new stake in MKS in the second quarter worth $1,676,000. Finally, AXA S.A. increased its holdings in shares of MKS by 22.8% during the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 29,253 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,907,000 after acquiring an additional 5,430 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

MKS Company Profile

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.