Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management Makes New Investment in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Key Points

• Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management has purchased 304 shares of KLA Corporation, valued at approximately $207,000, making it a new investor in the semiconductor company.
• KLA announced a quarterly dividend increase from $1.70 to $1.90 per share, which represents an annualized dividend of $7.60 and a dividend yield of 0.82%.
• The company also initiated a $5.00 billion share buyback program, allowing it to repurchase up to 5.4% of its shares, indicating confidence in its stock valuation.

Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management bought a new position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 304 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $207,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its position in KLA by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 140 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. IFC Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA by 4.6% in the first quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 342 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $232,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Trust Investment Advisors increased its stake in shares of KLA by 1.3% in the first quarter. Trust Investment Advisors now owns 1,188 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $808,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in KLA by 3.8% during the first quarter. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. now owns 438 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $298,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in KLA by 3.3% during 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at KLA

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total value 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. The trade was a 3.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,332,164. This represents a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,860 shares of company stock worth $8,196,798 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on KLAC shares. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $920.00 target price (up from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of KLA from $775.00 to $960.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $790.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $858.19.

KLA Stock Up 2.3%

NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $923.15 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $122.08 billion, a PE ratio of 33.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.42. KLA Corporation has a twelve month low of $551.33 and a twelve month high of $945.87. 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 $864.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $764.06.

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 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $5.26 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a $1.90 dividend. 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 0.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. KLA's 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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