Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Lowers Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 6.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 7,246 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 522 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in KLA were worth $4,566,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in KLA by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $259,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KLA by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 253 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $160,000 after buying an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. boosted its position in shares of KLA by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 246 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $155,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in KLA by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 755 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $476,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its holdings in KLA by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 582 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $451,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Up 1.4 %

KLAC stock opened at $719.61 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $95.63 billion, a PE ratio of 30.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. 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 12 month low of $609.40 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $728.45 and its 200 day moving average is $704.50.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. On average, research analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is 28.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on KLAC shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, KLA currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $830.67.

KLA Company 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.