Strs Ohio Invests $26.47 Million in KLA Corporation $KLAC

Key Points

• Strs Ohio has acquired 38,943 shares of KLA Corporation, valued at approximately $26 million, reflecting growing institutional interest in the semiconductor company.
• KLA recently reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $9.38 for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations and highlighting a 23.6% year-over-year revenue growth.
• Insiders have recently sold significant amounts of stock, with EVP Brian Lorig selling 8,049 shares and insider Ahmad A. Khan selling 13,716 shares, indicating a notable reduction in their respective holdings.

Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 38,943 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $26,473,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Activest Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of KLA by 4,100.0% during the 1st quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Finally, MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLAC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $920.00 price target (up previously from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $980.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of KLA from $775.00 to $960.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $890.59.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other KLA news, insider Ahmad A. Khan sold 13,716 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $881.50, for a total value of $12,090,654.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 27,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,128,418. The trade was a 33.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Brian Lorig sold 8,049 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $913.68, for a total transaction of $7,354,210.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,488,132.72. This represents a 41.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,605 shares of company stock valued at $29,348,291. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Performance

NASDAQ KLAC traded up $24.89 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $988.91. The company had a trading volume of 845,611 shares, compared to its average volume of 812,727. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $907.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $803.11. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $990.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $130.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 1.48.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.53 by $0.85. KLA had a net margin of 33.41% and a return on equity of 112.41%. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. KLA has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 7.760-9.300 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th were issued a dividend of $1.90 per share. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.01%.

About KLA

KLA Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and marketing of process control, process-enabling, and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related electronics industries worldwide. It operates through three segments: Semiconductor Process Control; Specialty Semiconductor Process; and PCB and Component Inspection.