KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Purchased by Metis Global Partners LLC

Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,867 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $3,697,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in KLA by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 67,202 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $42,346,000 after purchasing an additional 6,327 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in KLA in the fourth quarter valued at about $796,000. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in KLA by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,215 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,396,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in KLA by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 6,935 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,370,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in KLA by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 55,799 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $35,160,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on KLAC. StockNews.com cut shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $831.68.

KLA Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $708.84 on Friday. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $609.40 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $716.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $714.86. The firm has a market cap of $94.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.36.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.60%.

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.