StockNews.com Lowers KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Raymond James boosted their target price on KLA from $750.00 to $875.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, June 7th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on KLA from $730.00 to $680.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Barclays boosted their target price on KLA from $765.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a neutral rating and issued a $950.00 price target on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $805.29.

KLA Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of KLAC stock opened at $819.43 on Thursday. KLA has a 12-month low of $440.15 and a 12-month high of $896.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $803.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $747.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.27.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.15 by $0.45. KLA had a return on equity of 103.50% and a net margin of 28.15%. The company had revenue of $2.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that KLA will post 29.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. KLA’s payout ratio is presently 30.38%.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In related news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 44 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $819.40, for a total value of $36,053.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,644,493.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 825 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,749,473.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brian Lorig sold 44 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $819.40, for a total value of $36,053.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,211 shares in the company, valued at $11,644,493.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 20,917 shares of company stock valued at $14,568,247. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KLA

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC boosted its holdings in KLA by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 9,480 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $5,511,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096 shares during the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $4,559,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $811,000. APG Asset Management US Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $15,781,000. Finally, Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $1,050,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.