KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Bought by Swedbank AB

Swedbank AB raised its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 10.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 610,049 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 59,100 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned 0.46% of KLA worth $384,404,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Driehaus Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA in the second quarter worth approximately $218,000. Algert Global LLC bought a new position in shares of KLA during the second quarter worth about $239,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA by 35.4% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 14,117 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $11,640,000 after purchasing an additional 3,691 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of KLA by 556.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 105 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 0.8% during the second quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,172 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $5,913,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KLAC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on KLA from $850.00 to $759.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of KLA from $750.00 to $700.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $750.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $795.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $812.47.

KLA Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC traded up $13.81 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $716.73. The stock had a trading volume of 73,728 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,230,682. KLA Co. has a 52 week low of $581.70 and a 52 week high of $896.32. The company has a market cap of $95.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.79, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.27. The business’s 50 day moving average is $669.84 and its 200-day moving average is $718.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.03 by $0.30. KLA had a net margin of 28.92% and a return on equity of 105.16%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.74 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 30.34 EPS for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This is a positive change from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. 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.