Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC lessened its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 98.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,659 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 138,409 shares during the quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC's holdings in KLA were worth $1,675,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total value of $5,078,136.96. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $7,381,006.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,803,042. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays decreased their target price on KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities boosted their target price on KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Cowen restated a "hold" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $799.58.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $767.51 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $551.33 and a twelve month high of $896.32. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $694.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $691.08. The stock has a market cap of $101.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $8.08 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.26 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to buy up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. This is a positive change from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. KLA's payout ratio is presently 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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