KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Sold by Logan Capital Management Inc.

Logan Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 11.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 55,216 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 6,803 shares during the period. KLA comprises about 1.5% of Logan Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Logan Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in KLA were worth $34,793,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,484,468 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $8,496,833,000 after acquiring an additional 85,370 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its position in KLA by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,606,838 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $2,273,118,000 after purchasing an additional 14,397 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in KLA by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,253,302 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $2,046,472,000 after purchasing an additional 31,608 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,175,756,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of KLA by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,685,200 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,061,878,000 after buying an additional 204,330 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total transaction of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 28,798 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,867,606.76. This trade represents a 19.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of KLA stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 78,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $53,803,042. This represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

KLA Trading Up 0.1%

NASDAQ KLAC traded up $1.00 on Thursday, reaching $806.00. 1,129,035 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,077,731. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The business's fifty day moving average price is $682.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $686.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $106.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40. KLA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32.

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

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

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.90 per share. 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 0.94%. This is an increase from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLAC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $830.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $802.74.

About KLA

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.