AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Purchases 8,028 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc grew its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 15.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 60,834 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 8,028 shares during the quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc’s holdings in KLA were worth $38,326,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. CVA Family Office LLC grew its position in KLA by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 366 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $283,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 4.1% during the third quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 384 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $297,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 1.1% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,433 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,110,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA by 0.4% in the third quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,466 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,459,000 after buying an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 2.8% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 582 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $451,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $749.82 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $663.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $723.76. The company has a market capitalization of $100.30 billion, a PE ratio of 34.24, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.27. KLA Co. has a 52 week low of $581.70 and a 52 week high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.13.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.03 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.75 billion. KLA had a net margin of 28.92% and a return on equity of 105.16%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.74 EPS. Analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 30.34 earnings per share for the current 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 issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. KLA’s payout ratio is 31.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on KLAC. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $725.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Needham & Company LLC raised KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $750.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com lowered KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $925.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $806.35.

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.