MIG Capital LLC Takes Position in KLA Corporation $KLAC

MIG Capital LLC bought a new stake in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 962 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $654,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KLAC. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 95,141.6% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,674,347 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,138,221,000 after buying an additional 1,672,589 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the first quarter worth about $348,822,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of KLA by 27.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,852,814 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,259,543,000 after acquiring an additional 404,634 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA by 33.7% during the fourth 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 during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth about $187,212,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KLAC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $830.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities boosted 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $790.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $950.00 price target (up from $850.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $890.59.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 8,049 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $913.68, for a total transaction of $7,354,210.32. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,488,132.72. This trade represents a 41.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total transaction of $34,768.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,332,164. This trade represents a 1.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,908 shares of company stock worth $18,038,659 in the last three months. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

KLA Stock Up 1.0%

KLAC stock opened at $883.39 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $903.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $782.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $116.57 billion, a PE ratio of 29.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.44. KLA Corporation has a 12 month low of $551.33 and a 12 month high of $959.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 1.83.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $9.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.53 by $0.85. KLA had a net margin of 33.41% and a return on equity of 112.41%. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $6.60 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $1.90 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.01%.

KLA declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to buy up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership 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.