Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,518 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 441 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $4,107,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KLAC. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 300.0% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment raised its stake in shares of KLA by 82.3% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 4,515 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 2,038 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Stock Performance

NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $706.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $93.88 billion, a PE ratio of 29.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. KLA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $609.40 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.36. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $729.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $703.79.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. Equities research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on KLAC shares. StockNews.com cut KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.