KLA Corporation $KLAC Position Increased by Empirical Finance LLC

Key Points

• Empirical Finance LLC increased its KLA position by 931.8% in the second quarter, reaching 48,063 shares valued at approximately $14.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 86.65% of KLA.
• KLA reported quarterly earnings of $1.05 per share on $3.66 billion in revenue, exceeding analyst estimates, while revenue rose 15.2% year over year. The company also maintained its quarterly dividend at $0.23 per share.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $222.22 price target, although KLA shares recently traded at $188.98—below their 50-day moving average.

Empirical Finance LLC grew its holdings in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 931.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 48,063 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 43,405 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC's holdings in KLA were worth $14,501,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 298,176.3% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 599,111,883 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $180,758,046,000 after buying an additional 598,911,025 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in KLA by 928.9% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,821,622 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $4,471,832,000 after acquiring an additional 13,381,153 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in KLA during the second quarter worth about $2,522,430,000. NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in KLA by 987.0% in the second quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 979,371 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $295,486,000 after acquiring an additional 889,269 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Railway Pension Investments Ltd boosted its stake in KLA by 960.4% in the second quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 926,652 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $279,580,000 after acquiring an additional 839,265 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP MaryBeth Wilkinson sold 14,392 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.30, for a total value of $4,106,037.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 53,367 shares in the company, valued at $15,225,605.10. This trade represents a 21.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Brian Lorig sold 59,586 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.13, for a total value of $12,401,634.18. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 77,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,167,746.53. The trade was a 43.41% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 258,533 shares of company stock worth $55,977,470 in the last 90 days. 91.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on KLAC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $195.00 target price (down from $220.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of KLA in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and set a $260.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $245.00 target price on KLA and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $222.22.

KLA Stock Performance

KLA stock traded up $3.38 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $188.98. 12,400,449 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,358,996. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $203.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $189.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The company has a market cap of $246.91 billion, a PE ratio of 51.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.45. KLA Corporation has a one year low of $91.02 and a one year high of $307.37.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.61 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 87.66% and a net margin of 35.57%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.94 earnings per share. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 5.42 EPS for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th were given a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. This is a boost from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. KLA's payout ratio is currently 25.07%.

KLA Company Profile

KLA is a provider of process control and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related microelectronics industries. The company designs and manufactures equipment, software and services used by chipmakers to analyze and control manufacturing processes, detect defects, measure critical dimensions and improve yield across wafer fabrication, photomask and packaging operations. KLA's offerings are aimed at enabling production of advanced logic, memory, and specialty devices at progressively smaller technology nodes and more complex package structures.

Its product portfolio includes optical and e-beam inspection systems, metrology tools for critical dimension and film measurement, mask and reticle inspection platforms, as well as enterprise software and data analytics that aggregate process data and drive automated process control.

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