Chapman Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Chapman Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,370 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 24 shares during the period. KLA comprises 1.0% of Chapman Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Chapman Investment Management LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $1,378,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in KLA by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 427 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $197,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of KLA by 63.0% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,945 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,351,000 after purchasing an additional 1,138 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of KLA by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 594 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of KLA by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 466 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional lifted its position in shares of KLA by 946.7% in the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 7,170 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,289,000 after purchasing an additional 6,485 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC traded up $33.31 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $706.26. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,193,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 821,545. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.51 billion, a PE ratio of 37.00, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.34. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $369.00 and a twelve month high of $729.15. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $685.41 and a 200 day moving average of $599.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.94 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. KLA had a net margin of 27.19% and a return on equity of 103.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.49 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 22.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 19th were issued a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KLAC. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of KLA from $740.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $605.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $560.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $685.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $565.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $720.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

KLA Company Profile

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.