KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) PT Lowered to $680.00 at Susquehanna

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) had its target price cut by Susquehanna from $730.00 to $680.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the semiconductor company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a hold rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $806.24.

KLA Stock Performance

NASDAQ KLAC opened at $787.39 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $809.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $716.85. The stock has a market cap of $106.01 billion, a PE ratio of 41.25, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.27. KLA has a fifty-two week low of $440.15 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.15.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.40 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that KLA will post 29.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th were issued a $1.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 44 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $819.40, for a total value of $36,053.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,644,493.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 44 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $819.40, for a total value of $36,053.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,644,493.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 14,009 shares of the company’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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 93,142 shares in the company, valued at approximately $66,748,351.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 22,905 shares of company stock worth $16,831,966 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KLA

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC grew its position in KLA by 77.3% in the 1st quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 39 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Addison Advisors LLC bought a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in KLA in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About KLA

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.