KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• KLA hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $279.34 after closing previously at $248.64. The move came on heavy volume of 14.6 million shares.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on the semiconductor equipment maker, with 20 Buy ratings and 10 Hold ratings. The consensus price target is $273.59, though individual targets vary widely.
• Recent fundamentals and capital returns look strong: KLA beat quarterly EPS estimates by a wide margin, posted revenue growth, and authorized a $7 billion share buyback. The company also pays a dividend, though it was recently cut to $0.23 per quarter.

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $279.34 and last traded at $278.39, with a volume of 14606789 shares. The stock had previously closed at $248.64.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KLAC. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $2,250.00 price objective (up from $1,700.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on KLA from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of KLA from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price target on shares of KLA from $140.00 to $186.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $273.59.

KLA Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average of $205.58 and a 200 day moving average of $166.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 3.03 and a quick ratio of 2.11. The company has a market cap of $363.66 billion, a PE ratio of 78.80, a PEG ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 1.50.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The semiconductor company reported $9.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by $8.48. KLA had a return on equity of 91.89% and a net margin of 35.66%.The business had revenue of $3.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.84 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.5% compared to the same quarter last year. KLA has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 8.870-10.870 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that KLA Corporation will post 3.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. KLA's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.06%.

KLA declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, March 12th that allows the company to repurchase $7.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to purchase up to 3.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 45,120 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.34, for a total transaction of $9,986,725.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 713,830 shares in the company, valued at $157,996,990.71. This trade represents a 5.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 91.48% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KLA

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of KLAC. Union Heritage Capital LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the first quarter worth about $4,152,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its position in shares of KLA by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 94 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $139,000 after buying an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. Orographic Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter valued at about $390,000. Kentucky Retirement Systems grew its stake in shares of KLA by 64.7% during the 1st quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems now owns 13,759 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $20,259,000 after acquiring an additional 5,404 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Investment Advisors MI increased its holdings in KLA by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 2,225 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $3,280,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

KLA Company Profile

KLA is a provider of process control and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related microelectronics industries. The company designs and manufactures equipment, software and services used by chipmakers to analyze and control manufacturing processes, detect defects, measure critical dimensions and improve yield across wafer fabrication, photomask and packaging operations. KLA's offerings are aimed at enabling production of advanced logic, memory, and specialty devices at progressively smaller technology nodes and more complex package structures.

Its product portfolio includes optical and e-beam inspection systems, metrology tools for critical dimension and film measurement, mask and reticle inspection platforms, as well as enterprise software and data analytics that aggregate process data and drive automated process control.

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