LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Takes Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. bought a new position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,550 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,278,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KLAC. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC grew its position in KLA by 77.3% during the first quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 39 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the period. DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in KLA during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 2,033.3% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 64 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at KLA

In other KLA news, EVP Mary Beth Wilkinson sold 2,611 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $652.17, for a total value of $1,702,815.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,063,876.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other KLA news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total value of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 105,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,257,998.29. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mary Beth Wilkinson sold 2,611 shares of KLA stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $652.17, for a total value of $1,702,815.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,298 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,063,876.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 20,917 shares of company stock worth $14,568,247 in the last 90 days. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on KLAC shares. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of KLA from $750.00 to $875.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, June 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on KLA from $860.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on KLA from $730.00 to $680.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $805.29.

KLA Stock Performance

KLA stock opened at $709.89 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $95.58 billion, a PE ratio of 37.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.28. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $440.15 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $794.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $752.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 1.50.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.15 by $0.45. KLA had a net margin of 28.15% and a return on equity of 103.50%. The business had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.40 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 29.09 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $1.45 dividend. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.38%.

About KLA

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.