ING Groep NV Purchases 27,436 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

ING Groep NV raised its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 52.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 79,763 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 27,436 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV owned 0.06% of KLA worth $61,769,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in KLA during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in KLA in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in KLA in the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in KLA during the first quarter valued at $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLAC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of KLA from $680.00 to $675.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of KLA from $950.00 to $870.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. UBS Group cut their price target on KLA from $900.00 to $765.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, KLA has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $802.90.

KLA Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC traded up $2.98 during trading on Thursday, reaching $647.53. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 246,215 shares, compared to its average volume of 954,420. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.61 billion, a PE ratio of 29.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.29. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $527.11 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $724.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $764.10.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.03 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.75 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 105.16% and a net margin of 28.92%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.74 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 30.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. KLA’s payout ratio is 26.48%.

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.