Intech Investment Management LLC Decreases Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Intech Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 8.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,377 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 384 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $3,390,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in KLA during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the second quarter worth approximately $44,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in KLA in the second quarter valued at $53,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on KLAC. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $925.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on KLA from $950.00 to $870.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Citigroup cut their price objective on KLA from $960.00 to $900.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on KLA from $890.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $750.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $815.55.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of KLAC stock opened at $639.55 on Friday. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $527.11 and a 12-month high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.29. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $710.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $760.62.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $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, equities research analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 30.91 EPS for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This is a positive change from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.05%.

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.