World Investment Advisors Has $517,000 Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC - Free Report) by 105.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 820 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors' holdings in KLA were worth $517,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KLAC. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,175,756,000. Parnassus Investments LLC boosted its position 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 grew its stake in shares of KLA by 114,444.5% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $215,809,000 after purchasing an additional 342,189 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 25.2% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,455,161 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $916,926,000 after purchasing an additional 292,907 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in shares of KLA by 172.2% during the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 357,305 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $225,145,000 after purchasing an additional 226,041 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company's stock.

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Insider Transactions at KLA

In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was 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 represents a 19.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

KLA Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC traded up $13.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $670.22. The company had a trading volume of 1,361,682 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,052,995. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.36. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $551.33 and a twelve month high of $896.32. The stock's 50 day moving average is $705.57 and its 200-day moving average is $694.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.06 billion, a PE ratio of 28.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA's dividend payout ratio is 28.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, KLA currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $818.28.

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.