GAMMA Investing LLC Invests $435,000 in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 733 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $435,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 29.3% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 75 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. West Paces Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 210 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 466 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Journey Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Journey Advisory Group LLC now owns 502 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Drive Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 507 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $697.85, for a total transaction of $2,272,897.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,922 shares in the company, valued at $11,809,017.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other KLA news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of KLA stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $697.85, for a total value of $2,272,897.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,922 shares in the company, valued at $11,809,017.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,018 shares of KLA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.04, for a total value of $4,947,970.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 32,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,825,670. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC traded up $4.67 on Wednesday, hitting $652.88. 280,179 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 950,480. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $355.88 and a 12 month high of $729.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 1.34. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $684.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $597.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The semiconductor company reported $6.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.91 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 107.56% and a net margin of 27.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $7.38 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 22.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 19th were paid a dividend of $1.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KLAC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $800.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of KLA from $560.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of KLA from $565.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of KLA from $605.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $696.58.

KLA Company Profile

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.