KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Reaches New 12-Month Low - Should You Sell?

Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low on Friday . The company traded as low as $578.07 and last traded at $583.69, with a volume of 124375 shares. The stock had previously closed at $620.82.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on KLAC shares. Morgan Stanley raised 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 report on Monday, March 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $725.00 price objective (down from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $832.17.

KLA Price Performance

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 stock's 50-day moving average price is $710.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $696.59. The company has a market capitalization of $89.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37.

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KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 research analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at $20,867,606.76. This represents a 19.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of KLA

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

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.