The Goldman Sachs Group Has Lowered Expectations for MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) Stock Price

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) had its target price lowered by The Goldman Sachs Group from $143.00 to $128.00 in a research note published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on MKSI. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on MKS Instruments from $120.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $142.00 price objective on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on MKS Instruments from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Mizuho raised MKS Instruments to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Citigroup raised MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $141.75.

MKS Instruments Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of MKSI stock opened at $109.07 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.42, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98. MKS Instruments has a 12 month low of $97.54 and a 12 month high of $147.40. The stock has a market cap of $7.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 242.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.91.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $896.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $874.29 million. MKS Instruments had a return on equity of 15.79% and a net margin of 0.90%. MKS Instruments’s revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.46 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that MKS Instruments will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 25th were paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 25th. MKS Instruments’s payout ratio is 195.56%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jacqueline F. Moloney sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.80, for a total transaction of $34,440.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,146,048.40. This represents a 2.92 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.41, for a total transaction of $31,187.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 17,659 shares in the company, valued at $2,002,707.19. This trade represents a 1.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MKS Instruments

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MKSI. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MKS Instruments during the fourth quarter valued at $12,058,000. Fulton Bank N.A. lifted its holdings in MKS Instruments by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 4,248 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $443,000 after buying an additional 578 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in MKS Instruments by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,525,037 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $265,874,000 after buying an additional 237,979 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in MKS Instruments by 46.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,131 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 359 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of MKS Instruments by 58.0% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 433 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

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.