U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 1,304 KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,304 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $887,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of KLAC. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA by 81.9% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 544 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $342,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 341 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $215,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in KLA by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 32,916 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $20,741,000 after acquiring an additional 2,132 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in KLA by 15.5% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,422 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,526,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 3,894 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $2,454,000 after purchasing an additional 772 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at KLA

In related news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total transaction of $34,768.50. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was 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 owned 27,779 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,291,492.34. This trade represents a 3.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays decreased their price objective on KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $830.00 price target on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $920.00 price target (up previously from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, KLA presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $840.33.

KLA Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of KLAC traded down $1.80 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $926.82. The company had a trading volume of 185,838 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,133,855. The company's 50 day moving average price is $822.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $740.94. The stock has a market cap of $122.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.71, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.42. KLA Corporation has a 52 week low of $551.33 and a 52 week high of $932.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 2.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The company's revenue was up 35.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $1.90 per share. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. This is an increase from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. KLA's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.63%.

About KLA

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.