KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Stock Holdings Lessened by Raymond James & Associates

Raymond James & Associates lessened its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 134,387 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 686 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in KLA were worth $110,804,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in KLAC. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its stake in KLA by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 9,480 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $5,511,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in KLA by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,450 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $843,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft acquired a new stake in KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $4,559,000. Meritage Portfolio Management grew its stake in KLA by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 26,626 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $15,478,000 after acquiring an additional 1,692 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at about $811,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at KLA

In other KLA news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total transaction of $12,293,259.37. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 105,329 shares in the company, valued at $74,257,998.29. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other KLA news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total transaction of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 105,329 shares in the company, valued at $74,257,998.29. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brian Lorig sold 44 shares of KLA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $819.40, for a total value of $36,053.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,211 shares in the company, valued at $11,644,493.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,769 shares of company stock worth $21,324,890. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC traded down $16.62 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $819.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 673,447 shares, compared to its average volume of 934,722. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $806.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $734.62. The stock has a market cap of $110.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.93, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.27. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $440.15 and a twelve month high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.15 by $0.45. The business had revenue of $2.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion. KLA had a net margin of 28.15% and a return on equity of 103.50%. KLA’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.40 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 29.09 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on KLAC. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on KLA from $730.00 to $680.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Friday, April 26th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $805.29.

KLA Company Profile

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.