Bank Hapoalim BM Has $10.39 Million Stock Position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Bank Hapoalim BM grew its stake in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 5.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,276 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 844 shares during the quarter. KLA comprises 1.5% of Bank Hapoalim BM's holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Bank Hapoalim BM's holdings in KLA were worth $10,385,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 300.0% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. raised 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 worth $47,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In other news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,616 shares in the company, valued at $2,332,164. This represents a 1.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction, the chief financial officer 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 11,860 shares of company stock worth $8,196,798. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KLAC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $920.00 target price (up from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of KLA from $868.00 to $916.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $725.00 target price (down from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $830.00 target price on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $833.89.

KLA Stock Up 0.7%

KLA stock traded up $6.60 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $919.22. The company had a trading volume of 862,484 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,133,539. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.54 and a quick ratio of 1.74. The firm's fifty day moving average is $808.23 and its 200-day moving average is $736.46. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $928.02.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.26 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a $1.90 dividend. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This is a positive change from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. KLA's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.63%.

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.