King Luther Capital Management Corp Reduces Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

King Luther Capital Management Corp trimmed its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,712 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 49 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in KLA were worth $1,709,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its stake in shares of KLA by 47.8% in the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 860 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $542,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Clare Market Investments LLC acquired a new position in KLA in the 4th quarter worth approximately $687,000. Vista Investment Partners II LLC purchased a new position in KLA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,632,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 300.0% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 24.7% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 3,894 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,454,000 after acquiring an additional 772 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of KLA stock opened at $680.39 on Thursday. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $609.40 and a twelve month high of $896.32. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $724.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $707.91. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.41 billion, a PE ratio of 28.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s payout ratio is 28.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $831.68.

KLA Profile

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.