Norris Perne & French LLP MI Decreases Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Norris Perne & French LLP MI lessened its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 20,926 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 74 shares during the period. Norris Perne & French LLP MI’s holdings in KLA were worth $13,186,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its position in KLA by 32,828.8% during 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 buying an additional 3,408,617 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 76,452.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 302,382 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $234,168,000 after acquiring an additional 301,987 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in KLA by 25.7% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,399,367 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,083,684,000 after purchasing an additional 286,015 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in KLA by 6,188.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 239,404 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $185,397,000 after purchasing an additional 235,597 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased 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 valued at $176,720,000 after purchasing an additional 226,100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Up 4.1 %

NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $742.43 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $99.31 billion, a PE ratio of 33.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.27. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $581.70 and a 52-week high of $896.32. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $671.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $718.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 28.92% and a return on equity of 105.16%. On average, equities research analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 30.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. KLA’s payout ratio is 31.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KLAC shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $925.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Needham & Company LLC raised KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $750.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on KLA from $850.00 to $759.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of KLA from $750.00 to $700.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $795.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $812.47.

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.