KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Sold by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lowered its holdings in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 9.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,041,285 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 111,758 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 0.78% of KLA worth $707,866,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter worth $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 160.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on KLAC shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $725.00 price objective (down from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on KLA from $868.00 to $916.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $833.89.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In related news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total transaction of $34,768.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,332,164. This trade represents a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $781,022.74. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 27,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,291,492.34. This trade represents a 3.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of KLAC traded up $9.52 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $922.14. 370,918 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,131,744. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $928.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.42. The business's 50 day moving average is $808.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $736.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $8.08 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The firm's revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.26 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a dividend of $1.90 per share. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. This is a boost from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.63%.

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

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.