KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Reaches New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• KLA Corporation's stock recently hit a new 52-week high, trading at $961.25 before closing at $957.30, reflecting significant investor interest with a trading volume of over 212,000 shares.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on KLA, with eight ratings as "Buy" and ten as "Hold", while target prices range from $750.00 to $1,070.00, indicating potential for further price appreciation.
• The company reported strong quarterly earnings with a net margin of 33.41% and a substantial year-over-year revenue increase of 23.6%, leading to a projected EPS of 31.59 for the current year.

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $961.25 and last traded at $957.30, with a volume of 212415 shares. The stock had previously closed at $932.63.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on KLAC. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $980.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $920.00 price target (up previously from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $922.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Barclays raised their target price on shares of KLA from $590.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of KLA from $900.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Eight research 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 presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $890.59.

KLA Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a current ratio of 2.62. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $904.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $796.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $126.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.48.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.53 by $0.85. KLA had a net margin of 33.41% and a return on equity of 112.41%. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $6.60 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. KLA has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 7.760-9.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were issued a dividend of $1.90 per share. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.01%.

Insider Activity

In other KLA news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 8,049 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $913.68, for a total value of $7,354,210.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,488,132.72. The trade was a 41.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ahmad A. Khan sold 13,716 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $881.50, for a total transaction of $12,090,654.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 27,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,128,418. This represents a 33.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 32,605 shares of company stock valued at $29,348,291. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KLA

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Activest Wealth Management grew its position in shares of KLA by 4,100.0% during the 1st quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by 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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