Machina Capital S.A.S. Makes New $216,000 Investment in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Machina Capital S.A.S. acquired a new position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 343 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $216,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KLAC. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in shares of KLA by 32,828.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,419,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,647,708,000 after buying an additional 3,408,617 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 114,444.5% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $215,809,000 after purchasing an additional 342,189 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 10,766.7% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 228,200 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $176,720,000 after purchasing an additional 226,100 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $142,221,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 84.2% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 441,053 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $277,916,000 after purchasing an additional 201,649 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Trading Up 2.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $711.29 on Monday. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $609.40 and a 12-month high of $896.32. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $722.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $710.04. The company has a market capitalization of $94.52 billion, a PE ratio of 29.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. 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 (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KLAC shares. StockNews.com lowered KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $831.68.

About KLA

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.