Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV Buys 2,592 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV raised its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,023 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 2,592 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV’s holdings in KLA were worth $29,031,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,175,756,000. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 381.3% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 733,328 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $462,085,000 after purchasing an additional 580,967 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 342,189 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at about $187,212,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,455,161 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $916,926,000 after purchasing an additional 292,907 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total value of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total value of $7,381,006.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,803,042. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC stock opened at $795.90 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $105.25 billion, a PE ratio of 33.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The business has a 50 day moving average of $681.09 and a 200-day moving average of $685.71. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $551.33 and a 12-month high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. KLA’s quarterly revenue was up 35.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.26 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This is a positive change from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on KLA from $870.00 to $868.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $725.00 price target (down from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Barclays dropped their price target on KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $802.74.

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.