KLA (KLAC) Competitors

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) and Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their community ranking, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, risk, media sentiment, dividends and profitability.

Which has more volatility and risk, KLAC or AMAT?

KLA has a beta of 1.28, meaning that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Applied Materials has a beta of 1.53, meaning that its stock price is 53% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is KLAC or AMAT a better dividend stock?

KLA pays an annual dividend of $6.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. Applied Materials pays an annual dividend of $1.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. KLA pays out 28.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Applied Materials pays out 18.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. KLA has increased its dividend for 15 consecutive years. KLA is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Is KLAC or AMAT more profitable?

KLA has a net margin of 29.58% compared to Applied Materials' net margin of 26.41%. KLA's return on equity of 108.60% beat Applied Materials' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
KLA	29.58%	108.60%	24.20%
Applied Materials	26.41%	39.26%	21.92%

Which has preferable earnings and valuation, KLAC or AMAT?

Applied Materials has higher revenue and earnings than KLA. Applied Materials is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than KLA, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
KLA	$9.81B	10.21	$2.76B	$23.78	31.51
Applied Materials	$27.18B	5.34	$7.18B	$8.61	20.74

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer KLAC or AMAT?

Applied Materials received 1119 more outperform votes than KLA when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 71.94% of users gave Applied Materials an outperform vote while only 62.19% of users gave KLA an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
KLA	Outperform Votes 801 62.19%	Underperform Votes 487 37.81%
Applied Materials	Outperform Votes 1920 71.94%	Underperform Votes 749 28.06%

Do analysts recommend KLAC or AMAT?

KLA presently has a consensus target price of $831.68, suggesting a potential upside of 10.99%. Applied Materials has a consensus target price of $218.71, suggesting a potential upside of 22.49%. Given Applied Materials' higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Applied Materials is more favorable than KLA.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
KLA	0 Sell rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	13 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.68
Applied Materials	1 Sell rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	15 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.64

Do institutionals & insiders believe in KLAC or AMAT?

86.7% of KLA shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 80.6% of Applied Materials shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of KLA shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of Applied Materials shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Does the media refer more to KLAC or AMAT?

In the previous week, KLA had 36 more articles in the media than Applied Materials. MarketBeat recorded 83 mentions for KLA and 47 mentions for Applied Materials. Applied Materials' average media sentiment score of 1.37 beat KLA's score of 1.15 indicating that Applied Materials is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
KLA	49 Very Positive mention(s)	9 Positive mention(s)	12 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Applied Materials	42 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Summary

KLA beats Applied Materials on 11 of the 21 factors compared between the two stocks.