Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. Acquires Shares of 324 KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Key Points

• Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC has acquired 324 shares of KLA Corporation, valued at approximately $220,000, as part of its new investment in the semiconductor sector.
• Several institutional investors, including GAMMA Investing LLC and Goldman Sachs, significantly increased their holdings in KLA, indicating robust confidence in the company's stock.
• KLA Corporation reported a 23.6% year-over-year revenue growth and beat earnings expectations, demonstrating strong operational performance and setting a positive outlook for the current year.

Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. bought a new stake in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 324 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at about $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in KLA during the first quarter worth about $37,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. bought a new stake in KLA during the first quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. lifted its position 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 worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at KLA

In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were 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 owned 27,779 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,291,492.34. This trade represents a 3.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total transaction of $34,768.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,332,164. This trade represents a 1.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:KLAC traded up $2.74 on Friday, reaching $914.80. 719,495 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,018,441. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.44. The company's 50 day moving average is $888.42 and its 200-day moving average is $774.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.62, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $8.53 by $0.85. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. KLA had a net margin of 33.41% and a return on equity of 112.41%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.60 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor company to purchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $1.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $920.00 price objective (up previously from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of KLA from $900.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $980.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $830.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $890.59.

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.