KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Purchased by Albert D Mason Inc.

Albert D Mason Inc. increased its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 64.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,671 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 1,439 shares during the period. KLA accounts for 1.5% of Albert D Mason Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Albert D Mason Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $2,313,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in KLA by 39.6% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 1,969 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,241,000 after purchasing an additional 559 shares during the period. Butensky & Cohen Financial Security Inc. lifted its position in shares of KLA by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Butensky & Cohen Financial Security Inc. now owns 6,691 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,216,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its holdings in KLA by 34.3% in the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 104,804 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $66,039,000 after acquiring an additional 26,757 shares in the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC raised its position in KLA by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 780 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $492,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in KLA during the fourth quarter valued at $8,557,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Up 1.4 %

KLA stock opened at $757.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.13. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $654.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $726.15. KLA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $577.00 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32. The company has a market capitalization of $101.32 billion, a PE ratio of 34.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.27.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.75 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 30.37 earnings per share 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 given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KLAC has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of KLA from $850.00 to $759.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Needham & Company LLC raised KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $750.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $795.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Barclays reduced their price objective on KLA from $750.00 to $700.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of KLA from $746.00 to $703.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $806.60.

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.