Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC Boosts Position in KLA Corporation $KLAC

Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC raised its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 919.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 31,249 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 28,185 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $9,428,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KLAC. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in KLA in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC increased its holdings in KLA by 17.1% during the 4th quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 7 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in KLA by 36.4% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 60 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

KLA stock opened at $188.98 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $246.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.45. KLA Corporation has a 12-month low of $91.02 and a 12-month high of $307.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 2.03. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $201.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $189.49.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.05. KLA had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 87.66%. The business had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.94 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. Equities analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $195.00 price target (down from $220.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of KLA in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $325.00 target price on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $222.22.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In other news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 59,586 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.13, for a total value of $12,401,634.18. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 77,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,167,746.53. The trade was a 43.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP MaryBeth Wilkinson sold 13,802 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $2,698,291.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 22,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,322,505. The trade was a 38.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 258,533 shares of company stock valued at $55,977,470. 91.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About KLA

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) develops process-control and yield-management technologies used by semiconductor and other advanced-electronics manufacturers. Its systems help customers detect, measure and analyze defects and variations during the production of integrated circuits, enabling manufacturers to improve process performance, product quality and manufacturing yields.

The company’s portfolio includes wafer and reticle inspection systems, metrology and measurement tools, defect-review and analysis equipment, and software that supports process control and data management.