KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) CFO Bren D. Higgins Sells 7,008 Shares of Stock

KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 28,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,867,606.76. This trade represents a 19.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

KLA Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of KLAC stock opened at $700.00 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $729.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $703.36. KLA Co. has a 52 week low of $609.40 and a 52 week high of $896.32. The stock has a market cap of $93.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.44, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. 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 (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. Analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.60%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KLA

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth $1,175,756,000. Parnassus Investments LLC increased its stake in KLA by 381.3% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 733,328 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $462,085,000 after buying an additional 580,967 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in KLA by 114,444.5% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $215,809,000 after buying an additional 342,189 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in KLA by 33.7% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,191,262 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $750,638,000 after acquiring an additional 300,015 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth approximately $187,212,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KLAC has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lifted their price target on KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna increased their price objective on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $830.67.

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.