E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Increases Position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Key Points

• E Fund Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in KLA Corporation by 4.7%, now owning a total of 41,184 shares, valued at approximately $27.99 million.
• Institutional investors own 86.65% of KLA's stock, with notable increases in position from GAMMA Investing LLC and Goldman Sachs Group.
• KLA recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.90 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 0.8%.

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 4.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 41,184 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,839 shares during the quarter. KLA accounts for approximately 1.3% of E Fund Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in KLA were worth $27,997,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in KLA during the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in KLA during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in KLA during the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of KLA by 527.3% during the 1st quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 69 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KLAC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $950.00 price target (up previously from $850.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup lifted 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. lifted their price target on KLA from $900.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $790.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $890.59.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,801 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $913.68, for a total transaction of $9,868,657.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total transaction of $781,022.74. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 27,779 shares in the company, valued at $21,291,492.34. This represents a 3.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 19,908 shares of company stock valued at $18,038,659. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Down 8.4%

Shares of KLAC traded down $80.47 on Friday, reaching $874.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,063,166 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,029,476. The company has a current ratio of 2.62, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. KLA Corporation has a twelve month low of $551.33 and a twelve month high of $959.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $115.46 billion, a PE ratio of 28.79, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.44. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $902.52 and a 200-day moving average of $781.03.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.53 by $0.85. KLA had a net margin of 33.41% and a return on equity of 112.41%. The company had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.60 EPS. KLA's quarterly revenue was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. KLA's payout ratio is currently 25.01%.

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

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.