MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) Coverage Initiated at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) in a research note published on Monday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued an overweight rating and a $155.00 price objective on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on MKSI. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a hold rating and issued a $140.00 price target on shares of MKS Instruments in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on MKS Instruments from $145.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Benchmark restated a buy rating and issued a $142.00 target price on shares of MKS Instruments in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MKS Instruments presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $148.75.

MKS Instruments Stock Up 6.2 %

Shares of MKS Instruments stock opened at $109.97 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 3.69 and a quick ratio of 2.34. The business has a 50-day moving average of $128.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $124.49. MKS Instruments has a 1 year low of $63.44 and a 1 year high of $147.40.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.51. The business had revenue of $887.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $866.38 million. MKS Instruments had a positive return on equity of 13.90% and a negative net margin of 48.24%. MKS Instruments’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.32 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that MKS Instruments will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

MKS Instruments Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 26th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio is -3.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $30,865.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,300,404.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.41, for a total value of $35,587.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 18,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,356,426.69. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $30,865.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,300,404.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MKSI. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,892,941 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $709,077,000 after purchasing an additional 39,045 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MKS Instruments by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,490,779 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $461,966,000 after buying an additional 581,453 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments by 143.1% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,141,676 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $282,102,000 after buying an additional 1,260,792 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP grew its stake in MKS Instruments by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,157,767 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $119,099,000 after buying an additional 27,635 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in MKS Instruments in the 4th quarter valued at about $117,672,000. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.