KLA Corporation $KLAC Stake Decreased by Viking Fund Management LLC

Viking Fund Management LLC cut its position in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 16.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 25,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 5,000 shares during the quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $4,873,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 6.8% in the first quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 94 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in KLA by 36.4% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 60 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Stiles Financial Services Inc raised its stake in shares of KLA by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 1,783 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,625,000 after buying an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. raised its stake in shares of KLA by 28.2% in the 1st quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 100 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $147,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 822 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,211,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 59,586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.13, for a total value of $12,401,634.18. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 77,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,167,746.53. This represents a 43.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP MaryBeth Wilkinson sold 13,802 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $2,698,291.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 22,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,322,505. This represents a 38.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 243,339 shares of company stock valued at $46,903,454 in the last three months. 79.39% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

KLA Trading Down 2.8%

KLAC opened at $178.81 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $187.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $196.64. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $105.39 and a fifty-two week high of $307.37. The company has a market cap of $233.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 2.03.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.05. KLA had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 87.66%. The firm had revenue of $3.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.61 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that KLA Corporation will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is 25.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $180.00 target price (up from $170.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $260.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $325.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.26.

Trending Headlines about KLA

Here are the key news stories impacting KLA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street’s consensus price target implies approximately 27.9% potential upside. Analysts’ upward earnings-estimate revisions could provide near-term support, although price targets are not always reliable indicators. Wall Street Analysts See a 27.86% Upside in KLA
• Positive Sentiment: KLA’s underlying business remains strong: its latest reported quarter exceeded revenue and EPS expectations, with revenue up 15.2% year over year. The company also issued fiscal first-quarter 2027 EPS guidance of $1.06 to $1.26, supporting the longer-term growth case.
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional ownership data showed more investors adding than reducing positions in the latest quarter, including sizable additions by Invesco, Norges Bank, Capital International Investors and JPMorgan. Why KLA stock fell 4.6% today
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reduced its KLA price target to $227. While the revised target remains above the reported share price, the cut signals more cautious expectations. Morgan Stanley cuts target for KLA Corporation stock to USD 227
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are questioning whether KLA still offers attractive value after its five-year rally. Its elevated valuation leaves the stock vulnerable to profit-taking if AI infrastructure spending or semiconductor demand slows. KLA Stock Looks Fully Valued After Its 5 Year Run
• Negative Sentiment: Applied Materials, Lam Research and ASML also weakened as investors reassessed AI-related chip spending, financing conditions and potential competitive pressure from China’s memory-chip industry. Semiconductor Equipment Stocks Slide
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider-transaction data shows selling by KLA executives, including the CEO and CFO, with no reported open-market purchases in the past six months. This may reinforce concerns that the stock has become fully valued, though insider sales can reflect compensation and diversification.

KLA Profile

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC) develops process-control and yield-management solutions used by semiconductor and electronics manufacturers. Its systems help customers detect defects, measure and analyze materials and structures, and monitor manufacturing processes throughout the production of integrated circuits and other advanced electronic components.

The company’s product portfolio includes inspection and metrology systems, wafer and reticle inspection equipment, process-control software, data analytics tools, and related services.