KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) PT Raised to $760.00 at Stifel Nicolaus

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) had its price target lifted by Stifel Nicolaus from $685.00 to $760.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the semiconductor company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on KLAC. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of KLA from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of KLA from $605.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday. They issued an outperform rating and a $800.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of KLA from $565.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of KLA from $625.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $688.42.

KLA Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of KLA stock opened at $628.16 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $684.19 and a 200-day moving average of $592.79. The stock has a market cap of $84.95 billion, a PE ratio of 31.90, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 1.34. KLA has a 52-week low of $355.88 and a 52-week high of $729.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.91.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The semiconductor company reported $6.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.91 by $0.25. KLA had a net margin of 27.98% and a return on equity of 107.56%. The business had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $7.38 earnings per share. KLA’s revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that KLA will post 22.61 EPS for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 19th were given a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.46%.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In related news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,018 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 32,375 shares in the company, valued at $22,825,670. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KLA

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Journey Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Journey Advisory Group LLC now owns 518 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its stake in KLA by 29.3% during the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 75 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in KLA by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 210 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $122,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 466 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $214,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Drive Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 507 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $295,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.