Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. increased its stake in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 49.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,556 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,181 shares during the period. Sigma Investment Counselors Inc.'s holdings in KLA were worth $2,417,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter worth $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter worth $36,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of KLA by 527.3% in 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 in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 27,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,291,492.34. This represents a 3.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,332,164. This represents a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,860 shares of company stock worth $8,196,798. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research 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 report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $1,035.00 price objective (up previously from $835.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Monday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, KLA has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $831.11.

KLA Stock Down 1.3%

NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $912.62 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $120.69 billion, a PE ratio of 33.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.42. KLA Corporation has a twelve month low of $551.33 and a twelve month high of $928.02. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. The company's 50 day moving average is $808.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $736.46.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.26 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 35.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This is a boost from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. KLA's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.63%.

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.

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