AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Has $40.87 Million Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc boosted its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 61.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,806 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,114 shares during the quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc’s holdings in KLA were worth $40,870,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in shares of KLA during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in KLA by 77.3% during the first quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 39 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in KLA in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in KLA during the 2nd quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the 1st quarter worth about $46,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $687.41 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $731.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $763.72. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $505.50 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The company has a market capitalization of $91.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.29.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.03 by $0.30. KLA had a return on equity of 105.16% and a net margin of 28.92%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.74 earnings per share. KLA’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 30.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given 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 is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.99%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $925.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $750.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Argus increased their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of KLA from $890.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $802.90.

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.