KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) Stock Position Lifted by Parcion Private Wealth LLC

Parcion Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,924 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after acquiring an additional 359 shares during the period. KLA comprises 0.8% of Parcion Private Wealth LLC's holdings, making the stock its 27th largest position. Parcion Private Wealth LLC's holdings in KLA were worth $10,145,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in KLA during the fourth quarter worth $1,175,756,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in KLA by 95,141.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,674,347 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,138,221,000 after purchasing an additional 1,672,589 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in KLA by 33.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,191,262 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $750,638,000 after purchasing an additional 300,015 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $187,212,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its stake in shares of KLA by 25.2% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,455,161 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $916,926,000 after buying an additional 292,907 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on KLAC. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $830.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $1,035.00 target price (up previously from $835.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Barclays dropped their price target on KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $840.33.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other news, 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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 27,779 shares in the company, valued at $21,291,492.34. This represents a 3.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total transaction of $7,381,006.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 78,740 shares in the company, valued at $53,803,042. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798 in the last 90 days. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

KLA Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of KLAC stock traded up $2.88 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $936.37. The company had a trading volume of 904,860 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,138,165. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.54 and a quick ratio of 1.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $123.83 billion, a PE ratio of 34.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.42. The company's fifty day moving average is $841.30 and its 200 day moving average is $748.68. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $942.36.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its 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. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.26 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. This is a boost from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.63%.

KLA announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management 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.