M&G Plc Acquires New Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

M&G PLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,059 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $820,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cedar Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in KLA by 77.3% during the 1st quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 39 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in KLA in the second quarter worth $30,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in KLA in the second quarter worth $44,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in KLA in the first quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in KLA during the second quarter valued at $53,000. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC traded up $1.26 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $687.41. 1,278,083 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,220,755. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.39, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.29. KLA Co. has a one year low of $505.50 and a one year high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $731.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $764.53.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.03 by $0.30. KLA had a return on equity of 105.16% and a net margin of 28.92%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.74 earnings per share. KLA's revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 30.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This is an increase from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. KLA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on KLAC. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. UBS Group cut their price target on KLA from $900.00 to $765.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on KLA from $760.00 to $725.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, KLA presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $802.90.

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.