Nicola Wealth Management LTD. Purchases New Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Nicola Wealth Management LTD. purchased a new stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 22,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,863,000. KLA makes up about 1.5% of Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of KLAC. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in KLA by 32,828.8% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,419,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,647,708,000 after purchasing an additional 3,408,617 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in KLA by 114,444.5% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $215,809,000 after purchasing an additional 342,189 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in KLA by 10,766.7% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 228,200 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $176,720,000 after purchasing an additional 226,100 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in KLA by 84.2% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 441,053 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $277,916,000 after purchasing an additional 201,649 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in KLA in the third quarter worth $128,482,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Down 2.5 %

KLA stock opened at $691.15 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $717.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $713.28. KLA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $609.40 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.06, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. 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 results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KLAC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group upped their price target on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $831.68.

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.