KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Bought by Sonora Investment Management Group LLC

Sonora Investment Management Group LLC grew its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 32,421 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the period. KLA comprises approximately 1.7% of Sonora Investment Management Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $22,040,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ayrshire Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in KLA by 2.9% in the first quarter. Ayrshire Capital Management LLC now owns 2,036 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of KLA by 40.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,463 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,674,000 after purchasing an additional 705 shares during the period. Tounjian Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the first quarter worth about $697,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 28.5% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,145 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $781,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Range Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 28.3% in the 1st quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 847 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $576,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Trading Up 2.6%

NASDAQ KLAC opened at $829.29 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.87, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $713.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $702.72. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $551.33 and a 12 month high of $896.32.

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

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were 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 0.92%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.63%.

KLA announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on KLAC. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on KLA from $870.00 to $868.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $830.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $795.39.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were 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 owns 78,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,803,042. This trade represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total transaction of $781,022.74. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,291,492.34. The trade was a 3.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,829 shares of company stock worth $13,240,166 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA 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.