KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Sold by Candriam S.C.A.

Candriam S.C.A. lessened its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 54.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,521 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 27,339 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.'s holdings in KLA were worth $14,191,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in KLA in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in KLA in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA in the 3rd quarter valued at $53,000. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA purchased a new position in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on KLAC. UBS Group upped their target price on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna increased their price objective on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $831.68.

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KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ KLAC traded up $19.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $711.29. The stock had a trading volume of 1,087,883 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,143,586. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $609.40 and a 52-week high of $896.32. The company has a market cap of $94.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $722.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $710.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

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

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.60%.

About KLA

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.