Abacus FCF Advisors LLC Purchases 1,736 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Abacus FCF Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 46.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,492 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,736 shares during the quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC's holdings in KLA were worth $3,461,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,175,756,000. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its position in KLA by 381.3% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 733,328 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $462,085,000 after buying an additional 580,967 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 114,444.5% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $215,809,000 after buying an additional 342,189 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its position in shares of KLA by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,455,161 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $916,926,000 after buying an additional 292,907 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in KLA by 172.2% during the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 357,305 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $225,145,000 after acquiring an additional 226,041 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity at KLA

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total transaction of $5,078,136.96. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,867,606.76. The trade was a 19.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC traded up $13.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $670.22. 1,361,682 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,053,963. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $551.33 and a 52-week high of $896.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company's fifty day moving average price is $705.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $693.97.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors 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 was Monday, February 24th. KLA's payout ratio is 28.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on KLAC shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $725.00 price objective (down previously from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday, March 28th. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, KLA presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $818.28.

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.