Ifrah Financial Services Inc. Trims Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Ifrah Financial Services Inc. cut its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,317 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 94 shares during the quarter. Ifrah Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $1,460,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB increased its holdings in KLA by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 550,949 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $426,660,000 after purchasing an additional 2,019 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of KLA by 22.7% in the 4th quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 648 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Community Financial Services Group LLC lifted its position in KLA by 538.5% during the 3rd quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC now owns 7,445 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $5,765,000 after acquiring an additional 6,279 shares during the period. Eastern Bank raised its stake in shares of KLA by 655.8% during the 3rd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 27,368 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $21,194,000 after buying an additional 23,747 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV raised its stake in shares of KLA by 52.4% during the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 79,763 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $61,769,000 after buying an additional 27,436 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on KLAC. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. TD Cowen cut their price target on KLA from $760.00 to $725.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $831.68.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $750.74 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $697.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $714.99. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $609.40 and a 12-month high of $896.32. The firm has a market cap of $99.77 billion, a PE ratio of 31.57, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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%. Equities research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. KLA’s payout ratio is 28.60%.

About KLA

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.