Federated Hermes Inc. Raises Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 344.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,051 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 24,840 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.'s holdings in KLA were worth $20,196,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in KLA by 22.7% in the 4th quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 648 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 27.6% in the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,778 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $6,161,000 after purchasing an additional 2,112 shares during the period. Milestone Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,563,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc increased its stake in KLA by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 60,834 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $38,326,000 after buying an additional 8,028 shares during the period. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth $1,190,000. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC traded up $11.04 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $681.26. The stock had a trading volume of 196,991 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,050,668. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $551.33 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $705.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $693.97. The company has a market capitalization of $90.53 billion, a PE ratio of 28.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37.

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KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KLAC has been the topic of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on KLA from $850.00 to $700.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $818.28.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total value 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

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.