RFG Advisory LLC Purchases 8,406 Shares of KLA Corporation $KLAC

Key Points

• RFG Advisory increased its KLA stake by 396.5% in the second quarter, acquiring 8,406 additional shares for a total holding of 10,526 shares valued at approximately $3.18 million. Institutional investors collectively own 86.65% of KLA.
• KLA surpassed quarterly expectations, reporting $1.05 in earnings per share and $3.66 billion in revenue, with revenue up 15.2% year over year. Analysts currently have a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $222.22.
• The company maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.23, equivalent to an annualized $0.92 payout and a 0.5% yield, while insiders sold approximately $46 million in shares during the last quarter.

RFG Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 396.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 10,526 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after acquiring an additional 8,406 shares during the quarter. RFG Advisory LLC's holdings in KLA were worth $3,176,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in KLA by 298,176.3% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 599,111,883 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $180,758,046,000 after purchasing an additional 598,911,025 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in KLA by 928.9% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,821,622 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $4,471,832,000 after purchasing an additional 13,381,153 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of KLA during the second quarter worth $2,522,430,000. NEOS Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of KLA by 987.0% in the 2nd quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 979,371 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $295,486,000 after buying an additional 889,269 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Railway Pension Investments Ltd raised its stake in KLA by 960.4% during the 2nd quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 926,652 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $279,580,000 after buying an additional 839,265 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $182.91 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $199.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $189.74. KLA Corporation has a 52 week low of $91.49 and a 52 week high of $307.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $238.98 billion, a PE ratio of 49.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.45.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.61 billion. KLA had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 87.66%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.94 earnings per share. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. Analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were issued a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. This is a positive change from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. KLA's payout ratio is currently 25.07%.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other news, EVP MaryBeth Wilkinson sold 14,392 shares of KLA stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.30, for a total value of $4,106,037.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 53,367 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,225,605.10. The trade was a 21.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CAO Virendra Kirloskar sold 4,504 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $880,532.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,972 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,558,526. This trade represents a 36.10% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 213,413 shares of company stock worth $45,990,744. 91.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on KLAC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating and set a $260.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Scotiabank set a $200.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of KLA from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on KLA from $210.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $222.22.

KLA Company Profile

KLA Corporation NASDAQ: KLAC develops process-control and yield-management technologies used by semiconductor and other advanced-electronics manufacturers. Its systems help customers detect, measure and analyze defects and variations during the production of integrated circuits, enabling manufacturers to improve process performance, product quality and manufacturing yields.

The company's portfolio includes wafer and reticle inspection systems, metrology and measurement tools, defect-review and analysis equipment, and software that supports process control and data management.

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