Benchmark Investment Advisors LLC Grows Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Benchmark Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 83.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,019 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,183 shares during the period. KLA comprises about 2.9% of Benchmark Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Benchmark Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $4,423,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in KLA by 22.7% during the 4th quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 648 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $443,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of KLA by 27.6% in the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,778 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $6,161,000 after purchasing an additional 2,112 shares in the last quarter. Milestone Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,563,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc increased its position in KLA by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 60,834 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $38,326,000 after buying an additional 8,028 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC purchased a new position in KLA during the fourth quarter valued at $1,190,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KLAC. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $725.00 price target (down previously from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday, March 28th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $832.17.

Insider Activity at KLA

In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total transaction of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,867,606.76. This trade represents a 19.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ KLAC opened at $576.53 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $559.76 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The stock has a market cap of $76.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.24, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37. The company’s 50 day moving average is $716.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $699.79.

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

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.60%.

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.