PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co Reduces Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co cut its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 35.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,500 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 3,000 shares during the quarter. PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co’s holdings in KLA were worth $3,739,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of KLAC. Berkshire Bank increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 10.8% in the first quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 544 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Inscription Capital LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the 1st quarter valued at $772,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in KLA by 15.6% in the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 695 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $472,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA by 54.9% in the 1st quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,273 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $865,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Retirement Inc. raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 4,540 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,086,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KLAC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of KLA from $870.00 to $868.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $790.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Barclays cut their target price on KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $830.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $795.39.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total transaction of $7,381,006.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,740 shares in the company, valued at $53,803,042. This trade represents a 12.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total value of $781,022.74. Following the transaction, 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 position. 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 90 days. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

KLA Trading Up 2.8%

NASDAQ KLAC opened at $892.38 on Tuesday. KLA Co. has a 52 week low of $551.33 and a 52 week high of $896.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $740.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $710.94. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $118.01 billion, a PE ratio of 37.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40.

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

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This is a positive change from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.63%.

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

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.