Van ECK Associates Corp Sells 51,178 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Van ECK Associates Corp trimmed its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,348,189 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 51,178 shares during the period. KLA makes up 1.1% of Van ECK Associates Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in KLA were worth $849,521,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC grew its position in KLA by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $259,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 253 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $160,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 246 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $155,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of KLA by 1.1% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,433 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,110,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Finally, Ascent Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in KLA by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,466 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,459,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $750.55 on Thursday. KLA Co. has a 1-year low of $609.40 and a 1-year high of $896.32. The company has a market capitalization of $99.74 billion, a PE ratio of 31.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.28. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $690.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $714.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. On average, equities analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on KLAC shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their price target on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $831.68.

KLA Company 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.