Synovus Financial Corp Purchases 1,024 Shares of KLA Corporation $KLAC

Key Points

• Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in KLA Corporation by 14.3%, now owning 8,205 shares valued at approximately $5.58 million following the purchase of additional shares.
• KLA Corporation reported $9.38 EPS for its latest quarter, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $3.17 billion, showing a year-over-year revenue growth of 23.6%.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.90 per share, with a payout ratio of 25.01%, along with a stock repurchase plan worth $5 billion to buy back shares.

Synovus Financial Corp lifted its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 14.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,205 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in KLA were worth $5,578,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the first quarter worth $402,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 40.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,463 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,674,000 after buying an additional 705 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the 1st quarter worth about $1,479,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of KLA by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 138,990 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $93,624,000 after acquiring an additional 3,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in KLA during the 1st quarter valued at about $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other KLA news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total transaction of $34,768.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,332,164. This represents a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brian Lorig sold 8,049 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $913.68, for a total transaction of $7,354,210.32. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,479 shares in the company, valued at $10,488,132.72. This represents a 41.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,889 shares of company stock valued at $17,257,637. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC traded up $5.11 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $894.00. 964,163 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,143,951. The company's 50-day moving average is $904.58 and its 200 day moving average is $789.03. 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 $117.97 billion, a PE ratio of 29.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.44. 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 (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.60 earnings per share. The firm'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. On average, research analysts expect that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA declared that its board has authorized a stock 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 repurchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $1.90 per share. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. KLA's dividend payout ratio is 25.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on KLAC. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of KLA from $740.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Citigroup upped their price target on KLA from $1,035.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays boosted their target price on KLA from $590.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, KLA has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $890.59.

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.