KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Sold by Naples Global Advisors LLC

Naples Global Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.3% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,514 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 22 shares during the quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $5,108,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in KLA during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD lifted its holdings in KLA by 160.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA acquired a new position in KLA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $782.09 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $103.42 billion, a PE ratio of 32.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.36. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $705.53 and a 200-day moving average of $697.81. KLA Co. has a one year low of $551.33 and a one year high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. KLA’s revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to purchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a $1.90 dividend. This is a positive change from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total transaction of $7,381,006.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,803,042. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total transaction of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,867,606.76. This represents a 19.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 18,829 shares of company stock worth $13,240,166. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on KLA from $690.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. TD Securities lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, KLA currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $799.58.

KLA Company 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.