KLA Corporation $KLAC Shares Sold by AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc

Key Points

• AEGON Asset Management UK cut its KLA stake by 9.8% in the third quarter, selling 75,786 shares. It still held 697,179 shares, valued at about $135.9 million.
• KLA reported quarterly earnings of $1.22 per share, beating the $1.18 estimate, and revenue of $4.14 billion, above expectations and up 28.9% year over year.
• Analysts had a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $220.35. KLA also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share.

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc lessened its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 697,179 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 75,786 shares during the quarter. KLA accounts for 1.4% of AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc's portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc owned about 0.05% of KLA worth $135,901,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its position in shares of KLA by 6.8% during the first quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 94 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $139,000 after buying an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in KLA by 36.4% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 60 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in KLA by 2.2% in the third quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,656 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $518,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC raised its stake in KLA by 3.7% in the third quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 1,923 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $375,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bullock Wealth Management Group boosted its holdings in KLA by 3.1% in the third quarter. Bullock Wealth Management Group now owns 2,365 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $474,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Stock Up 9.3%

KLAC stock opened at $151.38 on Tuesday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $174.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $181.67. The company has a market capitalization of $197.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 2.76 and a quick ratio of 1.86. KLA Corporation has a 12 month low of $107.20 and a 12 month high of $307.37.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $4.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.04 billion. KLA had a net margin of 36.25% and a return on equity of 89.30%. The firm's revenue was up 28.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $8.47 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 5.73 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. KLA's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Richard Wallace sold 72,019 shares of KLA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.88, for a total transaction of $12,378,625.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 706,925 shares of the company's stock, valued at $121,506,269. The trade was a 9.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brian Lorig sold 59,586 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.13, for a total transaction of $12,401,634.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 77,681 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,167,746.53. This represents a 43.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 79.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KLAC. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $180.00 price objective (up from $170.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $185.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $210.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of KLA from $238.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of KLA from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Friday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $220.35.

KLA Profile

KLA Corporation develops process-control and yield-management technologies used in the manufacture of semiconductors and other electronic products. Its systems help manufacturers detect defects, measure features and monitor production processes as they make increasingly complex devices.

The company's products include inspection and metrology equipment, as well as software and related services. Its technologies support multiple stages of semiconductor production, from work on wafers and reticles to advanced packaging.

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