QRG Capital Management Inc. Sells 2,467 Shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

QRG Capital Management Inc. decreased its stake in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 4.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 53,332 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 2,467 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in KLA were worth $36,255,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of KLA by 12.0% in the 4th 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. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. boosted its position in KLA by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 570 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $359,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the period. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in KLA by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. now owns 438 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the period. Sunflower Bank N.A. boosted its position in KLA by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 381 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $259,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the period. Finally, Souders Financial Advisors boosted its position in KLA by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Souders Financial Advisors now owns 431 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on KLAC. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $790.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on KLA from $690.00 to $740.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $807.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 now directly owns 78,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $53,803,042. This represents a 12.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total value of $781,022.74. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 18,829 shares of company stock worth $13,240,166. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ KLAC traded up $0.62 on Tuesday, hitting $893.00. 1,333,943 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,120,801. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $740.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $710.94. The company has a market cap of $118.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.40. 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 $915.05.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.26 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 35.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $1.90 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. This is an increase from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. KLA's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.63%.

KLA declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock 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 purchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.