KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Given “Hold” Rating at Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC reiterated their hold rating on shares of KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Benzinga reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on KLA in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an outperform rating and a $800.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on KLA from $565.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Citigroup increased their price objective on KLA from $700.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on KLA from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on KLA from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $722.26.

KLA Trading Up 1.1 %

KLAC opened at $713.93 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $96.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.40, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.34. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $686.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $603.00. KLA has a one year low of $369.66 and a one year high of $729.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.14.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.94 by $0.32. KLA had a return on equity of 102.37% and a net margin of 27.19%. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.49 earnings per share. KLA’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that KLA will post 22.61 EPS for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 19th were paid a $1.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $697.85, for a total value of $2,272,897.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,809,017.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other KLA news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $697.85, for a total transaction of $2,272,897.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,809,017.70. 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 7,018 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.04, for a total value of $4,947,970.72. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 32,375 shares in the company, valued at $22,825,670. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KLA

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in shares of KLA by 63.0% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,945 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,351,000 after acquiring an additional 1,138 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in KLA by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 594 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in KLA by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,092 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $960,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 42.4% during the 3rd quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 1,225 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $562,000 after buying an additional 365 shares during the period. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in shares of KLA by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 45,325 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $20,789,000 after buying an additional 882 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About KLA

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.