Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Boosts Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,090 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 561 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in KLA were worth $10,911,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. NatWest Group plc raised its stake in KLA by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. NatWest Group plc now owns 16,465 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $12,751,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,644 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,597,000 after buying an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 8,532 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $6,607,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 25.6% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 692 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $536,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in shares of KLA by 18.2% during the 3rd quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 292 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $226,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of KLA stock opened at $678.52 on Friday. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $452.01 and a twelve month high of $896.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.54, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $770.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $763.84.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.15 by $0.45. KLA had a return on equity of 103.50% and a net margin of 28.15%. The firm had revenue of $2.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 29.13 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Argus increased their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on KLA in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $750.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $804.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 825 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $649.84, for a total value of $536,118.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,231 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,749,473.04. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total value of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 105,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,257,998.29. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 825 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $649.84, for a total value of $536,118.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,749,473.04. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,873 shares of company stock worth $14,532,193 over the last quarter. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.