Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd Makes New $479,000 Investment in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 760 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $479,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of KLAC. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. increased its position in KLA by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. now owns 1,557 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $981,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. increased its position in KLA by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 464 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. TTP Investments Inc. acquired a new position in KLA during the 4th quarter valued at $352,000. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC boosted its holdings in KLA by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 15,547 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $9,797,000 after purchasing an additional 874 shares during the period. Finally, Monte Financial Group LLC increased its stake in KLA by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Monte Financial Group LLC now owns 1,897 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,195,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Price Performance

KLAC stock opened at $749.82 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $100.30 billion, a PE ratio of 34.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $666.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $721.89. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $581.70 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.74 EPS. KLA’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 30.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This is a positive change from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 31.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KLAC shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Oppenheimer raised KLA from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $750.00 to $850.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of KLA from $746.00 to $703.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $725.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $812.47.

KLA 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.