KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Stock Position Increased by Bessemer Group Inc.

Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 336,797 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 1,278 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $163,354,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Shelton Capital Management grew its stake in shares of KLA by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Shelton Capital Management now owns 12,058 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,813,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 93.3% in the second quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 1,858 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $901,000 after buying an additional 897 shares in the last quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of KLA in the second quarter valued at $347,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of KLA by 11.4% during the 1st quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,294 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,508,000 after acquiring an additional 1,158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 25.9% in the 2nd quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 4,445 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,156,000 after acquiring an additional 915 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.49% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Up 1.1 %

KLAC traded up $5.75 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $550.29. 113,751 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,042,467. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 2.21 and a quick ratio of 1.42. The company has a market cap of $74.80 billion, a PE ratio of 24.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.34. KLA Co. has a one year low of $355.88 and a one year high of $550.67. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $479.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $470.54.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.39 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.36 billion. KLA had a net margin of 30.51% and a return on equity of 119.24%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 23.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, September 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to purchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 14th. This is an increase from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is 26.01%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jeneanne Michelle Hanley sold 500 shares of KLA stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.97, for a total value of $254,485.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,554,394.38. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Jeneanne Michelle Hanley sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.97, for a total value of $254,485.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,554,394.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Mary Beth Wilkinson sold 3,155 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.51, for a total value of $1,424,514.05. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,067,558.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on KLAC. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on KLA from $500.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of KLA from $529.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 26th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $450.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Barclays increased their target price on KLA from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 28th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on KLA from $490.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $507.24.

About KLA

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.