MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also commented on MKSI. Bank of America boosted their price objective on MKS from $380.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Citigroup lifted their price target on MKS from $425.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on MKS in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $453.00 price target for the company. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on MKS from $360.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $360.00 target price on shares of MKS in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MKS presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $385.00.

MKS Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MKSI opened at $304.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.60 billion, a PE ratio of 48.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.98. MKS has a fifty-two week low of $97.30 and a fifty-two week high of $447.62. The company has a fifty day moving average of $347.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $289.11.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $1.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. MKS had a net margin of 10.15% and a return on equity of 24.72%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.77 earnings per share. MKS has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.270-3.890 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that MKS will post 12.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. MKS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.95%.

Insider Activity at MKS

In other MKS news, EVP Kathleen Flaherty Burke sold 4,355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.94, for a total value of $1,393,338.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 49,439 shares in the company, valued at $15,817,513.66. This represents a 8.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Ramakumar Mayampurath sold 8,810 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.48, for a total value of $2,779,378.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 1 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $315.48. This trade represents a 99.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 54,406 shares of company stock valued at $17,577,866 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MKS

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dorsey Wright & Associates acquired a new stake in shares of MKS during the 1st quarter worth about $1,329,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in MKS by 3,011.9% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 19,294 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $4,434,000 after buying an additional 18,674 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in MKS by 7.8% during the first quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 123,288 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $28,333,000 after buying an additional 8,904 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MKS during the first quarter valued at about $23,809,000. Finally, Anson Funds Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of MKS in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $3,792,000. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More MKS News

Here are the key news stories impacting MKS this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raise price targets: Citigroup lifted its target from $425 to $430 and initiated a Buy rating; JPMorgan raised its target from $365 to $380 and maintained an Overweight rating. Needham also increased its target to $390 from $360 and retained a Buy rating. Citigroup analyst action JPMorgan analyst action Needham analyst action
• Positive Sentiment: Q2 earnings beat expectations: MKS reported adjusted earnings of $3.30 per share, above the approximately $2.94 consensus estimate and up from $1.77 a year earlier. Revenue reached $1.25 billion, exceeding forecasts of roughly $1.20 billion and rising 28.3% year over year. Management’s third-quarter guidance also supports an upbeat near-term view. MKS Q2 earnings beat estimates
• Positive Sentiment: AI demand improves visibility: MKS is ramping semiconductor and advanced-packaging capacity to meet AI-related demand, potentially supporting growth visibility into 2027 and strengthening the long-term investment case. MKSI Q2 earnings call highlights
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerages collectively assign MKS a “Moderate Buy” recommendation, while Wells Fargo raised its target from $300 to $325 but retained an Equal Weight rating, indicating a more measured view. MKS consensus recommendation Wells Fargo analyst action
• Negative Sentiment: The AI-related capacity expansion is creating near-term margin pressure, a risk that could limit immediate earnings leverage even as demand prospects improve.

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.