Wedmont Private Capital Acquires 873 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Wedmont Private Capital lifted its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 65.2% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,211 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 873 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital’s holdings in KLA were worth $1,482,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

KLA Price Performance

KLA stock opened at $808.00 on Monday. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $551.33 and a 12-month high of $896.32. 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 50-day moving average price of $710.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $701.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $106.85 billion, a PE ratio of 33.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $1.90 per share. 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 0.94%. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. KLA’s payout ratio is presently 27.63%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup cut their target price on KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $725.00 price target (down from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday, March 28th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on KLA from $870.00 to $868.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $830.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $795.39.

Insider Activity at KLA

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of KLA stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at $20,867,606.76. This trade represents a 19.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total transaction of $7,381,006.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 78,740 shares in the company, valued at $53,803,042. This represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,829 shares of company stock worth $13,240,166 in the last quarter. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.