Neuberger Berman Group LLC Reduces Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Neuberger Berman Group LLC reduced its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 14.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 49,381 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 8,079 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC's holdings in KLA were worth $31,119,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,175,756,000. Parnassus Investments LLC increased its stake in KLA by 381.3% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 733,328 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $462,085,000 after acquiring an additional 580,967 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in KLA by 114,444.5% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $215,809,000 after acquiring an additional 342,189 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in shares of KLA by 25.2% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,455,161 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $916,926,000 after acquiring an additional 292,907 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 172.2% during the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 357,305 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $225,145,000 after purchasing an additional 226,041 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

KLA Stock Up 0.9 %

KLA stock traded up $6.24 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $676.21. The stock had a trading volume of 789,119 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,052,644. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $703.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $693.18. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $551.33 and a 12 month 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 company has a market capitalization of $89.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.44, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37.

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

KLA Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KLAC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. 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. Susquehanna boosted their target price on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and set a $725.00 price target (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 issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, KLA presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $814.11.

KLA 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.