Arrowpoint Investment Partners Singapore Pte. Ltd. Buys New Position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Key Points

• Arrowpoint Investment Partners Singapore Pte. Ltd. recently acquired a new stake in KLA Corporation, purchasing 700 shares valued at approximately $476,000.
• KLA Corporation reported a significant earnings surprise with $9.38 earnings per share, exceeding estimates by $0.85, alongside a revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter.
• The company announced a $5 billion share repurchase plan, indicating management's belief that the stock is undervalued, and will pay a quarterly dividend of $1.90 per share in September.

Arrowpoint Investment Partners Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 700 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $476,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 95,141.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,674,347 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,138,221,000 after purchasing an additional 1,672,589 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in KLA during the first quarter valued at $348,822,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in KLA by 27.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,852,814 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,259,543,000 after buying an additional 404,634 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in KLA by 33.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,191,262 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $750,638,000 after buying an additional 300,015 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors acquired a new position in KLA during the fourth quarter valued at $187,212,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total transaction of $781,022.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 27,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,291,492.34. This represents a 3.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,801 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $913.68, for a total value of $9,868,657.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 92,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $84,805,950.24. This trade represents a 10.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 11,859 shares of company stock worth $10,684,449. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on KLAC shares. TD Cowen upped their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on KLA from $900.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $790.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $950.00 price target (up from $850.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $890.59.

KLA Stock Up 0.6%

NASDAQ KLAC traded up $5.93 on Thursday, reaching $955.41. The stock had a trading volume of 992,006 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,157,518. The company has a market capitalization of $126.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.44. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $901.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $779.37. KLA Corporation has a 1 year low of $551.33 and a 1 year high of $959.26. The company has a current ratio of 2.62, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.53 by $0.85. The company had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 112.41% and a net margin of 33.41%. The firm's revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.60 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid 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 is Monday, August 18th. KLA's dividend payout ratio is 25.01%.

KLA Company Profile

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.