Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Has $38.15 Million Stock Position in KLA Corporation $KLAC

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management Group Inc. significantly increased its holdings in KLA Corporation by 13,486.9%, owning 56,114 shares valued at approximately $38.1 million.
• Recent analyst reports have raised KLA’s price target, with JPMorgan boosting it to $1,070.00 and UBS to $960.00, indicating strong market confidence in the company's performance.
• KLA reported a quarterly earnings beat with $9.38 EPS, exceeding estimates and marking a 23.6% increase in revenue compared to the previous year.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. increased its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 13,486.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 56,114 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 55,701 shares during the quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.'s holdings in KLA were worth $38,146,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KLAC. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in KLA by 95,141.6% in 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 worth $348,822,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake 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 worth $1,259,543,000 after acquiring an additional 404,634 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake 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 worth $750,638,000 after acquiring an additional 300,015 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC raised its stake in KLA by 421.8% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 325,411 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $205,048,000 after acquiring an additional 263,051 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,801 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 92,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $84,805,950.24. This represents a 10.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,332,164. This represents a 1.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 32,605 shares of company stock worth $29,348,291. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 5th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on KLA from $740.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Citigroup raised their price target on KLA from $1,035.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on KLA from $900.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on KLA in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $980.00 price objective on the stock. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $890.59.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC traded up $12.79 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $930.52. 220,280 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,130,683. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.62 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. The firm has a market capitalization of $122.79 billion, a PE ratio of 30.52, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.48. The company's 50 day moving average is $903.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $795.89.

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

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. KLA's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.