KLA Corporation $KLAC Holdings Decreased by Kessler Investment Group LLC

Kessler Investment Group LLC decreased its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 9.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,713 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 3,916 shares during the quarter. KLA accounts for 3.4% of Kessler Investment Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Kessler Investment Group LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $7,351,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of KLA by 928.9% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,821,622 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,471,832,000 after acquiring an additional 13,381,153 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of KLA during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,522,430,000. National Pension Service raised its position in KLA by 899.4% in the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 3,634,859 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,096,673,000 after purchasing an additional 3,271,158 shares during the period. NEOS Investment Management LLC boosted its position in KLA by 987.0% during the second quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 979,371 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $295,486,000 after buying an additional 889,269 shares during the period. Finally, Railway Pension Investments Ltd grew its stake in shares of KLA by 960.4% during the second quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 926,652 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $279,580,000 after buying an additional 839,265 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of KLAC traded down $0.96 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $195.87. 3,169,746 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,069,603. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $255.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.49, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.45. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $187.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $195.32. KLA Corporation has a 1 year low of $98.10 and a 1 year high of $307.37.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.61 billion. KLA had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 87.66%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.94 earnings per share. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 5.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on KLAC. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Susquehanna set a $215.00 target price on shares of KLA and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $210.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $227.00 price target on shares of KLA and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $180.00 price target (up from $170.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.26.

Insider Activity at KLA

In other KLA news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 59,586 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.13, for a total value of $12,401,634.18. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 77,681 shares in the company, valued at $16,167,746.53. This trade represents a 43.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Virendra Kirloskar sold 4,504 shares of KLA stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $880,532.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,558,526. The trade was a 36.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 243,339 shares of company stock worth $46,903,454. 79.39% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About KLA

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC) develops process-control and yield-management solutions used by semiconductor and electronics manufacturers. Its systems help customers detect defects, measure and analyze materials and structures, and monitor manufacturing processes throughout the production of integrated circuits and other advanced electronic components.

The company’s product portfolio includes inspection and metrology systems, wafer and reticle inspection equipment, process-control software, data analytics tools, and related services.