Brown Advisory Inc. Sells 47,846 Shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Brown Advisory Inc. lessened its holdings in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 5.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 805,404 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 47,846 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. owned about 0.61% of KLA worth $547,514,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new position in KLA during the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in KLA during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of KLA by 527.3% in the 1st quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 69 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Performance

KLA stock traded down $4.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $924.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 570,461 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,136,402. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $826.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $742.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 2.54. KLA Corporation has a 12-month low of $551.33 and a 12-month high of $932.17. The company has a market capitalization of $122.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.61, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.42.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.01 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 112.97% and a net margin of 31.99%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $1.90 dividend. This is a positive change from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.63%.

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 shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group boosted their target price on KLA from $690.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities lifted their price target on KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $830.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $840.33.

Insider Activity at KLA

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total value of $7,381,006.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 78,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,803,042. This trade represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total value of $34,768.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,332,164. The trade was a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

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.