JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Stock Price

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has raised its target price for KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) stock from $900.00 to $1,070.00, indicating a potential upside of 21.31% from the previous close.
• Despite several analysts giving KLA varying ratings, the average consensus remains a "Hold" with a price target of $889.12.
• KLA's recent quarterly earnings showed a significant year-over-year revenue increase of 23.6%, reporting $3.17 billion in revenue and an EPS of $9.38.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $900.00 to $1,070.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the semiconductor company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective suggests a potential upside of 21.31% from the company's previous close.

KLAC has been the subject of a number of other reports. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $1,035.00 price objective (up from $835.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of KLA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 5th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of KLA from $740.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $590.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $889.12.

KLA Stock Up 0.3%

KLAC traded up $3.02 on Friday, reaching $882.05. 688,867 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,166,058. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $872.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $767.52. KLA has a 52-week low of $551.33 and a 52-week high of $945.87. The company has a market cap of $116.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.02, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.54 and a quick ratio of 1.74.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $8.53 by $0.85. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The firm had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that KLA will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at KLA

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the firm'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 value of $781,022.74. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 27,779 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,291,492.34. This trade represents a 3.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the firm'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 directly owned 78,740 shares in the company, valued at $53,803,042. This represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798 over the last three months. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of KLA by 1.1% during the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 188,735 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $169,056,000 after acquiring an additional 2,117 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 38.8% during the second quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,191 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its stake in shares of KLA by 1.7% during the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 25,341 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $22,699,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of KLA by 6.7% during the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 2,179 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,952,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 52.7% during the second quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 397 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $356,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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