KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) CEO Richard Wallace Sells 72,019 Shares

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) CEO Richard Wallace sold 72,019 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.88, for a total value of $12,378,625.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 706,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $121,506,269. This trade represents a 9.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

KLA Trading Down 0.4%

NASDAQ KLAC traded down $0.66 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $167.36. The company had a trading volume of 6,616,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,279,316. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $195.20 and a 200 day moving average of $190.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $218.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.45. KLA Corporation has a 1-year low of $97.63 and a 1-year high of $307.37. The company has a current ratio of 2.88, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.05. KLA had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 87.66%. The firm had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.94 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that KLA Corporation will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLAC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Scotiabank set a $200.00 price objective on KLA in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $325.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of KLA in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company set a $245.00 price target on KLA and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $222.22.

Institutional Trading of KLA

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. Allied Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the second quarter worth $27,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc increased its position in KLA by 2,275.0% during the 2nd quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 95 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in KLA by 900.0% during the 2nd quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in KLA in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in KLA by 900.0% in the 2nd quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 120 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

About KLA

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) develops process-control and yield-management technologies used by semiconductor and other advanced-electronics manufacturers. Its systems help customers detect, measure and analyze defects and variations during the production of integrated circuits, enabling manufacturers to improve process performance, product quality and manufacturing yields.

The company’s portfolio includes wafer and reticle inspection systems, metrology and measurement tools, defect-review and analysis equipment, and software that supports process control and data management.