KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Earns Outperform Rating from Analysts at Evercore ISI

Investment analysts at Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm set an “outperform” rating and a $800.00 price target on the semiconductor company’s stock. Evercore ISI’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 21.40% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on KLAC. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $800.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of KLA from $605.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $675.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research note on Monday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target 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, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $740.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $688.42.

KLA Price Performance

KLA stock opened at $658.98 on Tuesday. KLA has a 1 year low of $355.88 and a 1 year high of $729.15. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $684.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $591.25. The company has a market capitalization of $89.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.91.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced 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. KLA had a net margin of 27.98% and a return on equity of 107.56%. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $7.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that KLA will post 22.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Trading of KLA

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in KLA during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Addison Advisors LLC purchased a new position in KLA during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in KLA during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

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.