ING Groep NV Has $28.64 Million Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

ING Groep NV lowered its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 43.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 45,452 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 34,311 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in KLA were worth $28,640,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in KLA during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Groupama Asset Managment grew its holdings in KLA by 82.3% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 4,515 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 2,038 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in KLA during the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA bought a new stake in KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new stake in KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on KLAC. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, KLA presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $831.68.

KLA Stock Up 2.2 %

KLAC opened at $774.75 on Thursday. KLA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $609.40 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.36. The company has a market capitalization of $102.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.28. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $701.40 and a 200-day moving average of $714.62.

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

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.60%.

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.