Morse Asset Management Inc Has $6.91 Million Stock Holdings in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Morse Asset Management Inc grew its stake in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 6.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,157 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 580 shares during the quarter. KLA comprises 1.7% of Morse Asset Management Inc's holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Morse Asset Management Inc's holdings in KLA were worth $6,905,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 140 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. IFC Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 4.6% in the first quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 342 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Trust Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of KLA by 1.3% in the first quarter. Trust Investment Advisors now owns 1,188 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $808,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of KLA by 3.8% in the first quarter. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. now owns 438 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $298,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the period. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 3.3% in the first quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 495 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $337,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ KLAC traded down $5.96 on Friday, hitting $931.12. 682,033 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,136,345. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $850.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $753.70. The company has a market cap of $123.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. KLA Corporation has a 1-year low of $551.33 and a 1-year high of $945.87.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. The firm 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 company's quarterly revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $5.26 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $1.90 per share. This is a boost from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. KLA's payout ratio is currently 27.63%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Cowen restated a "hold" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. 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 research report on Thursday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $980.00 target price on the stock. Finally, 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 research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $840.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total transaction of $781,022.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed 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 sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,332,164. This represents a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.