Strategy Asset Managers LLC Sells 427 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Strategy Asset Managers LLC decreased its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 40.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 632 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 427 shares during the period. Strategy Asset Managers LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $259,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 253 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $160,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. grew its holdings in KLA by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 246 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $155,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC raised its position in KLA by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 755 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $476,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Finally, TFB Advisors LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 489 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $308,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KLAC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays upped their target price on KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $825.39.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total transaction of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,867,606.76. This trade represents a 19.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Down 3.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $673.60 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $727.83 and its 200 day moving average is $703.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.63. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $609.40 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. On average, research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.60%.

KLA Company 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.