Caxton Associates LLP Takes $738,000 Position in KLA Corporation $KLAC

Key Points

• Caxton Associates LLP invested approximately $738,000 in KLA Corporation, acquiring 1,086 shares of the semiconductor company in the 1st quarter.
• In the latest analysis, brokerages have set target prices for KLA ranging from $900.00 to $1,070.00, with a consensus average target price of $890.59.
• KLA Corporation recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.90, representing an annualized payout of $7.60 and a yield of 0.8%.

Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new position in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,086 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $738,000.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management lifted its holdings in KLA by 4,100.0% in the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC traded up $4.74 during trading on Friday, reaching $964.02. The stock had a trading volume of 583,894 shares, compared to its average volume of 886,747. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $905.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $800.44. The stock has a market cap of $127.21 billion, a PE ratio of 31.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a current ratio of 2.62. KLA Corporation has a one year low of $551.33 and a one year high of $968.09.

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

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th were given a dividend of $1.90 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. KLA's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on KLAC. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $922.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $950.00 price target (up previously from $850.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen cut KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of KLA from $740.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $890.59.

Insider Activity

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

KLA 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.