Palumbo Wealth Management LLC Takes Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Palumbo Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 513 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $397,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at about $238,000. Norden Group LLC lifted its position in shares of KLA by 1,579.3% in the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 6,566 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,589,000 after purchasing an additional 6,175 shares during the period. Advisor Resource Council purchased a new position in KLA during the first quarter valued at approximately $365,000. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its stake in KLA by 12.0% in the first quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 3,467 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,422,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Veracity Capital LLC purchased a new stake in KLA during the first quarter worth $230,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at KLA

In other KLA news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total value of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 105,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,257,998.29. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Mary Beth Wilkinson sold 2,611 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $652.17, for a total value of $1,702,815.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,063,876.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total transaction of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 105,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,257,998.29. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 20,873 shares of company stock worth $14,532,193 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on KLAC. UBS Group reduced their price target on KLA from $900.00 to $765.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $925.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of KLA from $765.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $725.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $805.29.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC traded down $21.20 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $670.60. 326,450 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 939,438. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.27. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $749.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $763.63. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. KLA Co. has a 1-year low of $453.50 and a 1-year high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.03 by $0.30. KLA had a return on equity of 103.50% and a net margin of 28.15%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.75 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.74 earnings per share. KLA’s quarterly revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 29.07 earnings per share for the current year.

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.