Toronto Dominion Bank Trims Stock Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Toronto Dominion Bank cut its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 30.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 52,265 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 22,855 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank's holdings in KLA were worth $32,933,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in KLA by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 160.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the business'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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 78,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,803,042. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total transaction of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 28,798 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,867,606.76. The trade was a 19.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Down 1.5%

KLAC stock traded down $11.43 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $767.51. The company had a trading volume of 681,865 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,082,753. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $693.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $690.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.36. The company has a market capitalization of $101.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40. KLA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32.

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

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

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $1.90 per share. This is a boost from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. KLA's payout ratio is 27.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of KLA from $690.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $800.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price target on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $799.58.

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.