Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Decreases Stock Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ cut its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 12.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 94,406 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 13,290 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in KLA were worth $59,787,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KLAC. Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its holdings in KLA by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 128,461 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $82,243,000 after buying an additional 6,774 shares in the last quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. increased its position in shares of KLA by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 92,838 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $58,500,000 after acquiring an additional 2,027 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of KLA by 60.6% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 106 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in KLA by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,051 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,813,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Essential Planning LLC. acquired a new stake in KLA during the 4th quarter valued at $4,799,000. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on KLAC shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. 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 an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $831.68.

KLA Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $680.39 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $90.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.61, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $724.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $707.91. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $609.40 and a 12 month high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued 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 return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. As a group, analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. KLA’s payout ratio is 28.60%.

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.