Banco Santander S.A. Invests $413,000 in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Banco Santander S.A. bought a new position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 533 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $413,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in KLA during the first quarter worth about $46,000. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,280 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,593,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC boosted its holdings in KLA by 35.5% during the first quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 2,184 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,526,000 after buying an additional 572 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LP grew its position in KLA by 3.7% during the first quarter. Caxton Associates LP now owns 2,853 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,993,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Benchmark Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in KLA by 259.3% in the first quarter. Benchmark Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,888 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,716,000 after buying an additional 2,806 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of KLAC opened at $639.55 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. KLA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $527.11 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32. The company has a market cap of $85.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.20, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $710.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $760.62.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.03 by $0.30. KLA had a return on equity of 105.16% and a net margin of 28.92%. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.75 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 30.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. This is a positive change from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KLAC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer raised KLA from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $750.00 to $850.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $750.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of KLA from $890.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $925.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $815.55.

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.