KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Stock Position Cut by Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund cut its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,980 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 363 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in KLA were worth $3,082,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KCM Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in KLA by 1.8% during the third quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 16,281 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $12,608,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. grew its stake in shares of KLA by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 622 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $482,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,357 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $9,569,000 after purchasing an additional 1,360 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 1.8% during the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 4,781 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,702,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in KLA by 5.7% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 41,871 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $32,425,000 after buying an additional 2,244 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Down 4.7 %

KLAC stock opened at $614.46 on Friday. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $527.11 and a twelve month high of $896.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The company has a market cap of $82.19 billion, a PE ratio of 28.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $721.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $762.59.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.03 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.75 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 105.16% and a net margin of 28.92%. KLA’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.74 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 30.91 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $1.70 dividend. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KLAC. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on KLA from $890.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of KLA from $960.00 to $900.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Barclays reduced their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $750.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Argus upped their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $802.90.

KLA Profile

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.