Manchester Global Management UK Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 59.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,745 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 14,500 shares during the quarter. KLA accounts for 0.8% of Manchester Global Management UK Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Manchester Global Management UK Ltd's holdings in KLA were worth $6,141,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake in KLA by 300.0% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in KLA during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD boosted its holdings in KLA by 160.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA bought a new stake in KLA during the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research analysts have recently commented on KLAC shares. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna upped their target price on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised KLA from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $748.00 to $870.00 in a report on Monday, March 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on KLA from $850.00 to $700.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $804.67.
Read Our Latest Research Report on KLAC
Insider Buying and Selling at KLA
In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of KLA stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at $20,867,606.76. The trade was a 19.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
KLA Price Performance
Shares of KLAC traded up $5.19 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $694.61. The stock had a trading volume of 631,550 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,061,719. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The company has a market capitalization of $92.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $685.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $685.92. KLA Co. has a 52 week low of $551.33 and a 52 week high of $896.32.
KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. On average, analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
KLA Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.60%.
About KLA
(
Free Report)
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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