Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Grows Position in KLA Corporation $KLAC

Key Points

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Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. raised its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 1.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 48,345 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 780 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in KLA were worth $32,869,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at about $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at about $37,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of KLA by 527.3% in the first quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 69 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on KLAC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on KLA from $900.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on KLA from $916.00 to $928.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $830.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on KLA from $1,035.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $890.59.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total value of $781,022.74. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 27,779 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,291,492.34. This trade represents a 3.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total value of $34,768.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,332,164. This trade represents a 1.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,908 shares of company stock worth $18,038,659 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of KLAC opened at $883.39 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $116.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.07, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $903.60 and a 200-day moving average of $782.31. 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 Corporation has a 52 week low of $551.33 and a 52 week high of $959.26.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 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 analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 112.41% and a net margin of 33.41%. The business's revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.60 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.01%.

KLA announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.

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