KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Purchased by RFG Advisory LLC

RFG Advisory LLC boosted its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 371.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,740 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 3,734 shares during the period. RFG Advisory LLC's holdings in KLA were worth $3,222,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KLAC. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its position in KLA by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 160.0% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Trading Up 2.0%

KLAC traded up $16.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $808.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 996,246 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,098,125. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $551.33 and a 52-week high of $896.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $710.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $700.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The firm has a market cap of $106.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.98, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $8.08 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. KLA's revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.26 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding 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 usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $1.90 dividend. This is a positive change from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total value of $7,381,006.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 78,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $53,803,042. This trade represents a 12.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 3.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 18,829 shares of company stock valued at $13,240,166. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLAC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities raised their price objective on KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $800.00 target price on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $799.58.

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.