Meritage Portfolio Management Sells 575 Shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Meritage Portfolio Management trimmed its holdings in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,542 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 575 shares during the quarter. KLA comprises 1.1% of Meritage Portfolio Management's portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Meritage Portfolio Management's holdings in KLA were worth $16,004,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its position 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 valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at about $35,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD grew its position in shares of KLA by 160.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of KLA by 527.3% in 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 institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLAC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $830.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities increased their target price on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays decreased their price objective on KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $790.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on KLA from $868.00 to $916.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $818.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other KLA news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total value of $34,768.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,332,164. This trade represents a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the firm'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 owned 78,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at $53,803,042. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC traded down $6.40 on Friday, reaching $914.70. 489,375 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,135,561. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. The company has a market capitalization of $120.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.25, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a fifty day moving average of $803.85 and a 200-day moving average of $734.48. KLA Corporation has a twelve month low of $551.33 and a twelve month high of $928.02.

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

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a dividend of $1.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. This is an increase from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.63%.

KLA declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About KLA

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.