MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $353.80, but opened at $336.12. MKS shares last traded at $346.0760, with a volume of 54,470 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. KeyCorp boosted their target price on MKS from $360.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 target price on shares of MKS in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on MKS from $374.00 to $442.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of MKS from $305.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on MKS in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $453.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $380.00.

MKS Stock Down 2.2%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market cap of $21.93 billion, a PE ratio of 67.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.93. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $348.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $275.27.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $1.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.71 EPS. MKS’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. MKS has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.600-3.200 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that MKS Inc. will post 11.77 EPS for the current year.

MKS Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at MKS

In related news, Director Joseph B. Donahue sold 2,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.95, for a total value of $688,695.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 10,033 shares in the company, valued at $3,290,322.35. The trade was a 17.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Gerald G. Colella sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.40, for a total value of $6,668,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,017 shares in the company, valued at $6,673,667.80. This represents a 49.98% 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 sold 53,949 shares of company stock valued at $17,446,108 in the last 90 days. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of MKS

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in MKS during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in MKS by 560.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of MKS by 616.7% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 172 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Allied Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of MKS during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in MKS during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.