FIL Ltd Increases Stock Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

FIL Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 340.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 67,978 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 52,554 shares during the period. FIL Ltd owned about 0.05% of KLA worth $42,834,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in KLA by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 253 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $160,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. lifted its holdings in KLA by 6.5% during the fourth 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 boosted its position in KLA by 2.0% during the fourth 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 boosted its position in KLA by 3.4% during 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 period. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ KLAC traded up $6.17 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $676.14. 545,646 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,052,643. The company has a market cap of $89.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37. 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 $551.33 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $703.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $693.18.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. On average, analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total value of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 28,798 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,867,606.76. The trade was a 19.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on KLAC shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of KLA from $825.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group raised their price target on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Citigroup reduced their price target on KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded KLA from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $748.00 to $870.00 in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, KLA presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $814.11.

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.