Donoghue Forlines LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 3,306 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $2,247,000.
A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings 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 valued at $1,138,221,000 after purchasing an additional 1,672,589 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of KLA by 27.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,852,814 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,259,543,000 after buying an additional 404,634 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 33.7% in 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 valued at $750,638,000 after buying an additional 300,015 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter valued at about $187,212,000. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 421.8% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 325,411 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $205,048,000 after buying an additional 263,051 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company's stock.
KLA Price Performance
KLA stock traded up $14.00 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $949.53. 419,273 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,155,373. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a current ratio of 2.62. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $894.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $776.44. KLA Corporation has a 52-week low of $551.33 and a 52-week high of $951.31. The company has a market cap of $125.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.22, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.44.
KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $8.53 by $0.85. The business 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%. KLA's quarterly revenue was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.
KLA announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to purchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.
KLA Dividend Announcement
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. KLA's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.01%.
Insider Activity at KLA
In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly 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 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 KLA stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total value of $34,768.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,616 shares in the company, valued at $2,332,164. This trade represents a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $920.00 price objective (up from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $830.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of KLA from $1,035.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $790.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $922.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Eleven equities 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.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $890.59.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on KLA
KLA Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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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