Royal Bank Of Canada Issues Positive Forecast for KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Stock Price

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) had its price objective upped by Royal Bank Of Canada from $1,550.00 to $1,600.00 in a report published on Friday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the semiconductor company’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on KLAC. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on KLA from $1,500.00 to $1,850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $1,630.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Friday. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $1,400.00 to $1,800.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $1,750.00 to $1,850.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research raised KLA from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,565.21.

KLA Stock Performance

KLA stock opened at $1,427.94 on Friday. KLA has a fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $1,693.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 2.69. The stock has a market cap of $187.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.45. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $1,325.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,125.21.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $8.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.75 by $0.10. KLA had a return on equity of 103.06% and a net margin of 35.76%.The business had revenue of $3.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $8.20 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that KLA will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th were given a dividend of $1.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 17th. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.86%.

Insider Activity at KLA

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,803 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,203.10, for a total value of $12,997,089.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 81,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $97,704,954.10. This trade represents a 11.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 2,254 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,237.01, for a total transaction of $2,788,220.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 32,154 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,774,819.54. This trade represents a 6.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 91.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KLA

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in KLA during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its position in KLA by 125.0% during the 3rd quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 36 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new position in shares of KLA in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $43,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about KLA

Here are the key news stories impacting KLA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KLA beat expectations for Q2: revenue of $3.30B and non‑GAAP EPS $8.85, topping consensus and showing year‑over‑year growth. Reuters: KLA Corp beats quarterly results
• Positive Sentiment: Strong cash flow and capital returns: management reported robust operating cash flow and meaningful share repurchases/dividends that support shareholder returns. PR Newswire: KLA fiscal Q2 results
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains, with recent price‑target lifts and buy/overweight calls (Needham, Berenberg, RBC), leaving upside per some models. The Fly: RBC raises KLA PT MarketScreener: Berenberg raises PT Benzinga: Needham reaffirmation
• Neutral Sentiment: Management sees advanced‑packaging revenue rising mid‑to‑high teens in 2026, driven by AI demand for process‑control tools — a structural tailwind but timing is variable. Seeking Alpha: Advanced packaging outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Quarter materials, slide deck and call transcript are available for deeper read; they show strength but also careful wording on near‑term demand. Seeking Alpha: Earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Forward guide disappointed some: Q3 EPS range (8.30–9.86) and revenue range ($3.2B–$3.5B) leave the midpoint roughly in line to slightly below Street EPS expectations and include a wide revenue band — investors sold the stock on guidance uncertainty. Yahoo Finance: Q2 highlights & guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Market worries about the WFE (wafer‑fab equipment) outlook and timing of customer ramps—analysts flagged caution, which pressured the stock despite the beat. Seeking Alpha: WFE outlook concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns: at its elevated multiple, some analysts and investors see limited near‑term upside, tempering reaction to the beat. Benzinga: Valuation offsets strengths
• Negative Sentiment: Unusually large put buying and elevated insider/institutional selling flagged on trading screens — options flow and visible sell pressure likely amplified the intraday decline. Quiver Quant: puts, insider sales and data

About KLA

KLA is a provider of process control and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related microelectronics industries. The company designs and manufactures equipment, software and services used by chipmakers to analyze and control manufacturing processes, detect defects, measure critical dimensions and improve yield across wafer fabrication, photomask and packaging operations. KLA’s offerings are aimed at enabling production of advanced logic, memory, and specialty devices at progressively smaller technology nodes and more complex package structures.

Its product portfolio includes optical and e-beam inspection systems, metrology tools for critical dimension and film measurement, mask and reticle inspection platforms, as well as enterprise software and data analytics that aggregate process data and drive automated process control.