Victory Capital Management Inc. Buys 9,267 Shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 5.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 168,119 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,267 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.13% of KLA worth $114,287,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in KLA by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 140 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. IFC Advisors LLC increased its holdings in KLA by 4.6% in the first quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 342 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in KLA by 3.8% in the first quarter. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. now owns 438 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $298,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in KLA by 3.3% in the first quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 495 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $337,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the period. Finally, Sunflower Bank N.A. boosted its stake in KLA by 4.7% in the first quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 381 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $259,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KLAC has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on KLA in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $980.00 target price for the company. Cowen restated a "hold" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on KLA from $690.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, KLA presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $840.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $21,291,492.34. This represents a 3.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 78,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,803,042. This represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC stock traded up $3.59 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $937.08. 1,135,315 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,136,631. 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 Corporation has a 52 week low of $551.33 and a 52 week high of $942.36. The business has a 50-day moving average of $841.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $748.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $123.92 billion, a PE ratio of 34.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.42.

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

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $1.90 per share. This is an increase from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. KLA's payout ratio is presently 27.63%.

KLA announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.