Assetmark Inc. Grows Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 123,445 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,454 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $77,785,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Souders Financial Advisors increased its position in KLA by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Souders Financial Advisors now owns 431 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $272,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter valued at $793,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of KLA by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 158,852 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $100,096,000 after acquiring an additional 14,765 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH increased its holdings in KLA by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 5,035 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,173,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in KLA by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 67,547 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $42,563,000 after acquiring an additional 9,791 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on KLAC shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays raised their target price on 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 target price on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $831.68.

KLA Stock Performance

NASDAQ KLAC opened at $699.00 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $92.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.36. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $609.40 and a 52-week high of $896.32. The company has a fifty day moving average of $718.70 and a 200-day moving average of $712.43.

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, topping 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, equities research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 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.