KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Stake Increased by Meeder Asset Management Inc.

Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 9.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,285 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 362 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $2,993,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in KLAC. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of KLA by 9.1% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 229,019 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $105,042,000 after buying an additional 19,167 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in KLA in the fourth quarter worth $51,000. DNB Asset Management AS boosted its holdings in KLA by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 45,611 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $26,514,000 after purchasing an additional 5,624 shares during the period. Montecito Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in KLA by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Montecito Bank & Trust now owns 619 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $360,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new position in KLA in the fourth quarter worth $98,000. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

KLA stock traded up $0.40 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $858.12. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 637,135 shares, compared to its average volume of 882,704. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $798.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $703.33. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $440.15 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The company has a market capitalization of $115.54 billion, a PE ratio of 44.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.27.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.94 by $0.32. KLA had a net margin of 27.19% and a return on equity of 102.37%. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.49 earnings per share. KLA’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 23.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th were given a $1.45 dividend. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 14th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other KLA news, insider Ahmad A. Khan sold 7,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $760.00, for a total transaction of $5,953,080.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 32,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,399,800. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other KLA news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 14,009 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $716.63, for a total transaction of $10,039,269.67. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 93,142 shares in the company, valued at approximately $66,748,351.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ahmad A. Khan sold 7,833 shares of KLA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $760.00, for a total value of $5,953,080.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,399,800. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 22,905 shares of company stock worth $16,831,966. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLAC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays raised shares of KLA from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $630.00 to $765.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $800.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $685.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of KLA in a report on Monday, May 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $820.00 price target for the company. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $750.00 to $875.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, June 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $758.40.

KLA Profile

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.