Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 9.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 295,236 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 25,764 shares during the period. KLA accounts for 0.7% of Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.22% of KLA worth $228,634,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Swedbank AB increased its stake in KLA by 0.4% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 550,949 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $426,660,000 after acquiring an additional 2,019 shares during the last quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 538.5% in the 3rd quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC now owns 7,445 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $5,765,000 after purchasing an additional 6,279 shares during the period. Eastern Bank increased its position in shares of KLA by 655.8% during the 3rd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 27,368 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $21,194,000 after purchasing an additional 23,747 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV raised its holdings in KLA by 52.4% during the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 79,763 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $61,769,000 after buying an additional 27,436 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in KLA by 14.1% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 33,215 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $25,722,000 after buying an additional 4,112 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of KLA from $870.00 to $800.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of KLA from $746.00 to $703.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. TD Cowen cut their target price on KLA from $760.00 to $725.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $750.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $812.30.

KLA Stock Performance

KLA stock traded up $4.03 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $652.37. 1,093,291 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 977,482. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $684.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $753.35. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $542.41 and a 12-month 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 stock has a market cap of $87.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.28.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.03 by $0.30. KLA had a return on equity of 105.16% and a net margin of 28.92%. The firm had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.74 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 30.61 EPS for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. This is a positive change from KLA's previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. KLA's payout ratio is 31.05%.

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.