Nvwm LLC Has $1.13 Million Position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Nvwm LLC grew its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 1.8% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,662 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the quarter. Nvwm LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $1,130,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new position in KLA during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the first quarter worth approximately $36,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. bought a new position in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at approximately $45,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 527.3% in the 1st quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 69 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HM Payson & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 270.0% in the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 74 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ KLAC opened at $902.09 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. KLA Corporation has a 12 month low of $551.33 and a 12 month high of $945.87. The company has a market capitalization of $119.29 billion, a PE ratio of 32.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.42. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $862.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $761.33.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.26 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a $1.90 dividend. This is an increase from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is 27.63%.

Insider Activity at KLA

In other KLA news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of KLA stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total value of $34,768.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,616 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,332,164. This trade represents a 1.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the 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 owned 27,779 shares of the company’s stock, 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. In the last three months, insiders sold 11,860 shares of company stock worth $8,196,798. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on KLAC shares. UBS Group raised their price target on KLA from $775.00 to $960.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $920.00 price target (up previously from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $849.76.

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.