First Horizon Advisors Inc. Sells 218 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

First Horizon Advisors Inc. lowered its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 31.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 469 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 218 shares during the quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $296,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in KLA during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Groupama Asset Managment grew its position in shares of KLA by 82.3% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 4,515 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 2,038 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new position in KLA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $724.97 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $96.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.49, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $609.40 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $711.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $715.70.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. As a group, research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLAC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer upgraded KLA from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $750.00 to $850.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $831.68.

About KLA

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.