710 Shares in KLA Corporation $KLAC Purchased by KTF Investments LLC

Key Points

• KTF Investments opened a new 710‑share position in KLA during Q4 valued at about $863,000, while institutional investors now hold roughly 86.65% of the stock.
• KLA beat Q4 estimates, reporting EPS of $8.85 versus $8.75 and revenue of $3.30B (up 7.1% YoY), with a strong ROE (98.18%) and analysts forecasting about 36.64 EPS for the fiscal year.
• The board authorized a $7.0 billion share repurchase (representing up to 3.7% of shares) and the company recently paid a quarterly dividend of $1.90 ($7.60 annualized, ~0.4% yield).

KTF Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 710 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $863,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westpac Banking Corp lifted its position in KLA by 11.2% during the third quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 9,276 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $10,005,000 after buying an additional 932 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in KLA by 4,023.1% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,072 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,303,000 after acquiring an additional 1,046 shares during the last quarter. BOKF NA increased its stake in KLA by 16.6% during the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 8,534 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $9,205,000 after acquiring an additional 1,218 shares during the last quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in KLA during the third quarter worth about $133,209,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in KLA by 86.6% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,063 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $4,937,000 after acquiring an additional 1,886 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Price Performance

KLAC stock opened at $1,900.00 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 2.83. KLA Corporation has a 1 year low of $674.20 and a 1 year high of $1,939.36. The firm has a market cap of $249.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,567.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,379.96.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $8.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $8.75 by $0.10. KLA had a return on equity of 98.18% and a net margin of 35.76%.The business had revenue of $3.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $8.20 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 36.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, March 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $7.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to buy up to 3.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were paid a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KLAC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered KLA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on KLA from $1,751.00 to $1,809.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Argus upped their price target on KLA from $1,400.00 to $1,750.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Susquehanna restated a "neutral" rating and set a $1,500.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price target on KLA from $1,300.00 to $1,400.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,624.07.

KLA Company Profile

KLA is a provider of process control and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related microelectronics industries. The company designs and manufactures equipment, software and services used by chipmakers to analyze and control manufacturing processes, detect defects, measure critical dimensions and improve yield across wafer fabrication, photomask and packaging operations. KLA's offerings are aimed at enabling production of advanced logic, memory, and specialty devices at progressively smaller technology nodes and more complex package structures.

Its product portfolio includes optical and e-beam inspection systems, metrology tools for critical dimension and film measurement, mask and reticle inspection platforms, as well as enterprise software and data analytics that aggregate process data and drive automated process control.

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