MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) shares gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $262.94, but opened at $243.38. MKS shares last traded at $248.6860, with a volume of 1,370,281 shares trading hands.

The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. MKS had a net margin of 7.25% and a return on equity of 20.80%. MKS’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.15 EPS. MKS has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.720-2.280 EPS.

MKS Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is an increase from MKS’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. MKS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.36%.

Key Headlines Impacting MKS

Here are the key news stories impacting MKS this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Refinancing and dividend raise improve the capital structure and return profile, which supports long-term shareholder value. MKS Refinancing Reshapes Debt Profile While Raising Dividend For Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Underlying business still grew: Q4 revenue (~$1.03B) and EPS showed year-over-year improvement, and multiple brokers maintain buy/overweight ratings and above-current price targets — supportive for medium-term demand expectations. MKS Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2025 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Guidance is mixed: Q1 EPS range (roughly $1.72–$2.28) and revenue range are wide and incorporate tariff assumptions — the midpoint may be roughly in line with some estimates but the uncertainty widens the forecast band. MKS Earnings Release & Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Small EPS miss vs. consensus (reported non-GAAP EPS $2.47 vs. ~$2.51 expected) and a slight revenue shortfall versus some estimates prompted downside reaction despite YoY profit growth. MKS (MKSI) Misses Q4 Earnings Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Company flagged tariff-related uncertainty and potential retaliatory actions in its outlook; management expects gross-margin pressure risk, which can compress near-term profits. MKS Inc. shares slide as investors digest Q4 results, tariff caveats, and a post-high pullback
• Negative Sentiment: Operational cash flow declined year-over-year and multiple insider sales (no recent insider buys) plus large institutional rebalancings increase selling pressure around an already elevated valuation. MKS Instruments (MKSI) Stock Falls on Q4 2025 Earnings

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MKSI. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of MKS from $200.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of MKS from $122.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on MKS from $200.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MKS in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded MKS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MKS has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $231.50.

Insider Activity at MKS

In other news, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.81, for a total value of $47,643.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 18,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,011,514.03. This represents a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MKS

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MKSI. Norges Bank acquired a new position in MKS in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $147,453,000. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of MKS during the 4th quarter worth approximately $95,880,000. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC increased its position in shares of MKS by 146.4% during the second quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 912,380 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $90,654,000 after purchasing an additional 542,094 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its position in shares of MKS by 159.7% during the fourth quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 839,773 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $134,196,000 after purchasing an additional 516,409 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of MKS by 9,165.9% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 446,248 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $55,232,000 after purchasing an additional 441,432 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

MKS Stock Down 5.6%

The firm has a market capitalization of $16.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.95. The business has a 50 day moving average of $199.49 and a 200 day moving average of $153.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 1.81.

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.