ING Groep NV Sells 34,311 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

ING Groep NV reduced its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 43.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,452 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 34,311 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in KLA were worth $28,640,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Parcion Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in KLA by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 14,565 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $9,178,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in KLA by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 65,003 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $40,960,000 after buying an additional 5,975 shares during the period. Cumberland Partners Ltd lifted its stake in KLA by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd now owns 1,300 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $819,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund raised its position in shares of KLA by 48.3% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 5,902 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,719,000 after purchasing an additional 1,922 shares during the period. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its position in shares of KLA by 28.9% during the fourth quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 802 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $505,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on KLAC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group increased their price target on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price objective on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $831.68.

KLA Price Performance

KLAC opened at $774.75 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $701.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $714.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.63. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $609.40 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The firm has a market cap of $102.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.58, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.28.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. As a group, analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

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.