Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC Increases Position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC raised its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 44.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 97,498 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 29,951 shares during the period. KLA comprises about 3.2% of Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC owned approximately 0.07% of KLA worth $66,279,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KLAC. Norges Bank acquired a new position in KLA during the fourth quarter worth $1,175,756,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in 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 in the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 381.3% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 733,328 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $462,085,000 after purchasing an additional 580,967 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted 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 purchasing an additional 300,015 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors acquired a new position in KLA during the fourth quarter worth $187,212,000. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ:KLAC traded down $2.94 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $920.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 169,991 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,133,333. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $931.96. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $817.26 and a 200-day moving average of $739.01. The company has a market capitalization of $121.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.42.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $1.90 per share. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. This is a positive change from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.63%.

Insider Activity at KLA

In other KLA news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were 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 owned 2,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,332,164. The trade was a 1.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total transaction of $7,381,006.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 78,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at $53,803,042. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on KLAC. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $725.00 target price (down previously from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday, March 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on KLA in a research report on Thursday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $980.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $920.00 price objective (up from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen lifted their target price on KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 5th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $840.33.

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.

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