Toronto Dominion Bank Decreases Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Toronto Dominion Bank cut its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 30.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,265 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 22,855 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank’s holdings in KLA were worth $32,933,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in KLA during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,175,756,000. Parnassus Investments LLC raised its stake in KLA by 381.3% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 733,328 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $462,085,000 after acquiring an additional 580,967 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in KLA by 114,444.5% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $215,809,000 after acquiring an additional 342,189 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new stake in KLA in the fourth quarter valued at $187,212,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in KLA by 25.2% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,455,161 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $916,926,000 after acquiring an additional 292,907 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on KLAC shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on KLA from $870.00 to $868.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, TD Securities increased their price target on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $802.74.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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. This trade represents a 12.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the business’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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,867,606.76. The trade was a 19.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $791.17 on Monday. KLA Co. has a 52 week low of $551.33 and a 52 week high of $896.32. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $688.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $688.22. The company has a market cap of $104.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.27, a PEG 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.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.26 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $1.90 per share. 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 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. KLA’s payout ratio is presently 27.63%.

KLA announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Company Profile

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.