Spire Wealth Management Has $7.52 Million Position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Spire Wealth Management trimmed its position in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 10.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,062 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 1,223 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management's holdings in KLA were worth $7,520,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake in KLA by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD lifted its stake in KLA by 160.0% during the fourth quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. increased its stake in KLA by 527.3% during the first quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 69 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KLAC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Cowen restated a "hold" rating on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup dropped their target price on KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of KLA from $870.00 to $868.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $815.39.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of KLA stock in a transaction dated 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 now owns 78,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $53,803,042. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total value of $781,022.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of KLA stock traded up $9.48 on Thursday, reaching $902.94. The stock had a trading volume of 864,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,125,806. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $914.83. The stock has a market cap of $119.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.40. The business's 50-day moving average price is $768.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $720.69. 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 (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last posted 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 net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.26 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a $1.90 dividend. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. 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 (DPR) is 27.63%.

KLA declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor company to buy up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.