KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Sold by E Fund Management Co. Ltd.

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. reduced its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,310 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 224 shares during the quarter. KLA makes up 1.4% of E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in KLA were worth $21,688,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 75 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KLA by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 210 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. Journey Advisory Group LLC grew its position in KLA by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Journey Advisory Group LLC now owns 502 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $230,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in KLA by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 507 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, MWA Asset Management raised its position in KLA by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. MWA Asset Management now owns 683 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $397,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of KLA from $685.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. UBS Group increased their price objective on KLA from $605.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of KLA from $565.00 to $725.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $722.26.

KLA Trading Down 0.9 %

KLA stock traded down $6.48 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $710.67. The stock had a trading volume of 736,804 shares, compared to its average volume of 951,355. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $690.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $612.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $95.68 billion, a PE ratio of 37.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.33. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $380.50 and a twelve month 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.94 by $0.32. KLA had a net margin of 27.19% and a return on equity of 102.37%. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.49 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 23.24 EPS for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.38%.

Insider Activity at KLA

In related news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of KLA 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,809,017.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $697.85, for a total value of $2,272,897.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,809,017.70. The transaction 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 business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.04, for a total transaction of $4,947,970.72. Following the transaction, 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. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Company Profile

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.