Jackson Wealth Management LLC Raises Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Jackson Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 74.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 22,293 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 9,543 shares during the quarter. KLA accounts for about 2.1% of Jackson Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Jackson Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $17,264,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of KLA by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,112,261 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $9,159,832,000 after acquiring an additional 76,226 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in KLA by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,811,766 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,318,329,000 after acquiring an additional 28,172 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in KLA by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,618,709 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,829,352,000 after acquiring an additional 71,289 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in KLA by 1.9% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,163,958 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $959,695,000 after purchasing an additional 21,412 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in KLA by 7.9% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,113,352 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $917,970,000 after purchasing an additional 81,335 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC traded up $5.31 on Thursday, reaching $669.94. 211,069 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 933,455. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $764.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $764.02. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $452.01 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The company has a market cap of $90.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.27.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.15 by $0.45. KLA had a net margin of 28.15% and a return on equity of 103.50%. The firm had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.40 earnings per share. KLA’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 29.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a dividend of $1.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.38%.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other KLA news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total value of $12,293,259.37. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 105,329 shares in the company, valued at $74,257,998.29. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 825 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $649.84, for a total value of $536,118.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,749,473.04. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total value of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 105,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,257,998.29. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 20,873 shares of company stock worth $14,532,193. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KLAC. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Argus upped their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $925.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Oppenheimer began coverage on KLA in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $750.00 target price for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, KLA presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $804.57.

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.