IFM Investors Pty Ltd Has $22.34 Million Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd decreased its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 28,848 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 126 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in KLA were worth $22,340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Jackson Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of KLA by 74.8% in the third quarter. Jackson Wealth Management LLC now owns 22,293 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $17,264,000 after purchasing an additional 9,543 shares during the last quarter. Lafayette Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of KLA by 0.5% in the third quarter. Lafayette Investments Inc. now owns 19,608 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $15,185,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Greystone Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of KLA by 1.5% in the third quarter. Greystone Financial Group LLC now owns 1,206 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $934,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in KLA during the third quarter valued at $14,860,000. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in KLA by 27.8% during the third quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,666 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $5,937,000 after acquiring an additional 1,668 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on KLAC shares. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of KLA in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $750.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of KLA from $950.00 to $870.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Argus upped their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $765.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $804.57.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total transaction of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 105,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,257,998.29. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Mary Beth Wilkinson sold 2,611 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $652.17, for a total value of $1,702,815.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,063,876.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total transaction of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 105,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,257,998.29. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 20,873 shares of company stock valued at $14,532,193 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Up 0.6 %

NASDAQ:KLAC traded up $3.79 on Thursday, hitting $668.42. The stock had a trading volume of 305,292 shares, compared to its average volume of 933,913. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $452.01 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $764.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $764.02. The stock has a market cap of $90.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 2.15.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released 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 the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.40 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 29.13 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The business 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. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.38%.

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.