MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Cantor Fitzgerald Analyst Says

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) had its price objective raised by equities researchers at Cantor Fitzgerald from $110.00 to $120.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock. Cantor Fitzgerald’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 30.34% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on MKSI. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on MKS from $93.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of MKS from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reduced their target price on shares of MKS from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.82.

MKS Stock Up 1.5%

MKSI opened at $92.07 on Tuesday. MKS has a 1 year low of $54.84 and a 1 year high of $147.40. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $82.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 3.11. The company has a market cap of $6.21 billion, a PE ratio of 27.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.84.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.29. MKS had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 20.67%. The business had revenue of $936.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $913.59 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.18 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that MKS will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MKS

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MKS by 772.7% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 61,447 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $6,481,000 after acquiring an additional 54,406 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group bought a new stake in MKS during the fourth quarter valued at $1,480,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in MKS during the fourth quarter valued at $85,451,000. Summit Global Investments acquired a new stake in shares of MKS during the fourth quarter worth $1,254,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of MKS by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,291,478 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $239,207,000 after buying an additional 6,715 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

About MKS

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.