Greenleaf Trust Increases Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,700 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust’s holdings in KLA were worth $2,151,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its position in KLA by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 22,566 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $8,261,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of KLA by 34.9% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 80,289 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $29,382,000 after purchasing an additional 20,773 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC boosted its position in shares of KLA by 183.1% in the 1st quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 4,374 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,601,000 after purchasing an additional 2,829 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of KLA by 32.9% in the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 924 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $338,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. increased its position in KLA by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 50,684 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $18,553,000 after buying an additional 2,151 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at KLA

In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,018 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.04, for a total value of $4,947,970.72. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 32,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,825,670. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $697.85, for a total transaction of $2,272,897.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,809,017.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,018 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.04, for a total transaction of $4,947,970.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 32,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,825,670. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

KLA Price Performance

KLAC stock traded down $16.06 during trading on Friday, reaching $628.16. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,072,881 shares, compared to its average volume of 780,643. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The company’s fifty day moving average is $684.19 and its 200-day moving average is $592.79. The company has a market capitalization of $84.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.34. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $355.88 and a 1 year high of $729.15.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The semiconductor company reported $6.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.91 by $0.25. KLA had a return on equity of 107.56% and a net margin of 27.98%. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.38 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 22.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 19th were given a dividend of $1.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is 29.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KLAC. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $675.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Berenberg Bank raised their price target on shares of KLA from $670.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on KLA from $565.00 to $725.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on KLA in a report on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $800.00 target price for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on KLA from $685.00 to $760.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $688.42.

About KLA

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.