KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Bought by SP Asset Management LLC

SP Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 687 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. SP Asset Management LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $566,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in KLA during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in KLA by 77.3% in the 1st quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 39 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the 2nd quarter valued at $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $713.46 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $96.06 billion, a PE ratio of 37.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $440.15 and a 12-month high of $896.32. The company has a 50-day moving average of $791.67 and a 200 day moving average of $752.48.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.15 by $0.45. KLA had a return on equity of 103.50% and a net margin of 28.15%. The business had revenue of $2.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.40 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 29.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a $1.45 dividend. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.38%.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total value of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 105,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,257,998.29. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 44 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $819.40, for a total transaction of $36,053.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,644,493.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total transaction of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 105,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,257,998.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,917 shares of company stock worth $14,568,247 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on KLAC shares. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of KLA from $750.00 to $875.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, June 7th. StockNews.com cut KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Argus increased their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on KLA from $765.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $805.29.

About KLA

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.