KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Sold by New York State Teachers Retirement System

New York State Teachers Retirement System lessened its stake in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 2.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 112,550 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 3,165 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.08% of KLA worth $76,511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in KLA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $402,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in KLA by 40.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,463 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,674,000 after purchasing an additional 705 shares during the period. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. acquired a new position in KLA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,479,000. Keyvantage Wealth LLC acquired a new position in KLA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $214,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in KLA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on KLAC shares. TD Cowen boosted their target price on KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup decreased their price target on KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group boosted their price target on KLA from $690.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on KLA from $740.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $815.39.

KLA Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of KLA stock opened at $889.87 on Monday. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $914.83. The firm has a market cap of $117.68 billion, a PE ratio of 32.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.40. The business's fifty day moving average is $778.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $725.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 2.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47.

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

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a dividend of $1.90 per share. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date 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 announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor company to purchase 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.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total transaction of $7,381,006.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,740 shares in the company, valued at $53,803,042. This represents a 12.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total value of $781,022.74. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 27,779 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,291,492.34. The trade was a 3.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.

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