Apollon Wealth Management LLC Acquires 986 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 22.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,427 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 986 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $3,155,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lincoln National Corp raised its stake in KLA by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 2,513 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,461,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares during the period. Fielder Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth $223,000. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 10,679 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $6,208,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of KLA by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 4,120 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,395,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new stake in KLA during the 4th quarter worth about $248,000. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on KLAC shares. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $750.00 target price (up previously from $625.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on KLA from $692.00 to $698.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on KLA from $670.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $800.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $722.26.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of KLAC stock traded down $4.00 on Tuesday, reaching $714.38. 782,703 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 955,340. The company has a market cap of $96.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.33. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $374.49 and a 1 year high of $729.15. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $688.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $610.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.14.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.94 by $0.32. KLA had a return on equity of 102.37% and a net margin of 27.19%. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 23.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. KLA’s payout ratio is presently 30.38%.

Insider Activity at KLA

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

KLA 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.