Legal & General Group Plc Purchases New Stake in MKS Inc. $MKSI

Posted by Geri Gentry on Aug 29th, 2026

Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of MKS Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI – Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 117,817 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,816,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.17% of MKS as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of MKS during the 4th quarter valued at $147,453,000. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP purchased a new stake in MKS during the 4th quarter worth $95,880,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its holdings in MKS by 159.7% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in 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 during the period. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of MKS by 63.4% during the second quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 878,114 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $87,249,000 after purchasing an additional 340,645 shares in the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MKS Stock Down 5.6%

Shares of NASDAQ MKSI opened at $255.76 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.14. MKS Inc. has a 1 year low of $97.50 and a 1 year high of $447.62. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $330.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $295.54. The firm has a market cap of $17.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.79, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.98.

MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.39. MKS had a return on equity of 24.72% and a net margin of 10.15%.The firm had revenue of $1.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.77 earnings per share. MKS’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.3% on a year-over-year basis. MKS has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.270-3.890 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that MKS Inc. will post 13.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 25th. MKS’s dividend payout ratio is 15.95%.

Insider Transactions at MKS

In other news, CEO John Tseng-Chung Lee sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.01, for a total transaction of $3,020,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 134,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,703,699.76. This trade represents a 6.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP John Edward Williams sold 457 shares of MKS stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.31, for a total transaction of $131,757.67. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,181,494.38. This trade represents a 10.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 12,891 shares of company stock valued at $3,919,127. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

MKS News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting MKS this week:

Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised multiple earnings estimates. Zacks increased its Q3 2026 EPS forecast to $3.60 from $3.22 and its FY2026 estimate to $12.76 from $11.86. Estimates were also raised for FY2027 to $16.52 from $15.00 and FY2028 to $20.10 from $18.24. Several quarterly forecasts through 2028 were increased as well, signaling stronger expected earnings momentum. Earnings Estimates Moving Higher for MKS
Positive Sentiment: Wall Street price targets imply substantial potential upside. The average analyst target cited by Zacks indicates 49.8% potential appreciation, although the article cautions that price targets are not always reliable. The favorable earnings-revision trend could support the stock if it translates into stronger results. Wall Street Analysts Think MKS Could Surge
Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho lowered its MKS price target to $330. The target reduction is a negative signal, but the revised target remains well above the level at which the stock recently traded. Mizuho Lowers MKS Price Target
Negative Sentiment: The CEO sold company shares. CEO John Tseng-Chung Lee reportedly sold 10,000 shares for approximately $3 million. Insider selling can raise concerns about management’s view of near-term valuation or performance, even though it does not necessarily indicate a change in business fundamentals. MKS CEO Sells Shares

Analyst Ratings Changes

MKSI has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of MKS in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on MKS in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $453.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised MKS from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of MKS from $360.00 to $330.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of MKS in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. 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 given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $382.86.

Read Our Latest Research Report on MKSI

About MKS

(Free Report)

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.