Morse Asset Management Inc cut its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,577 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 786 shares during the quarter. KLA comprises about 1.4% of Morse Asset Management Inc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Morse Asset Management Inc's holdings in KLA were worth $6,035,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in KLA by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 22,223 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $14,003,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in KLA by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,473 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $928,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Czech National Bank boosted its stake in KLA by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 29,002 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $18,275,000 after acquiring an additional 1,619 shares during the period. Aprio Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in KLA by 24.2% in the fourth quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 477 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC acquired a new position in KLA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,190,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $725.00 price target (down previously from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday, March 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $800.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $690.00 to $740.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $802.74.
Read Our Latest Report on KLAC
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at $20,867,606.76. This represents a 19.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was 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 trade represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
KLA Price Performance
Shares of KLA stock traded down $14.83 on Friday, reaching $791.17. 1,130,794 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,081,236. The firm's 50 day moving average is $688.05 and its 200-day moving average is $688.07. KLA Co. has a one year low of $551.33 and a one year high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.36. The firm has a market cap of $104.63 billion, a PE ratio of 33.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40.
KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $8.08 by $0.33. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.26 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 35.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.
KLA Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $1.90 per share. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. This is a boost from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. KLA's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.63%.
KLA declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to purchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.
KLA Company Profile
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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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