KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Sold by Shell Asset Management Co.

Shell Asset Management Co. reduced its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 11.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,069 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 1,023 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in KLA were worth $5,084,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $479,000. Rafferty Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of KLA by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 497,003 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $313,172,000 after acquiring an additional 8,015 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,178,000. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 16.2% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 207,333 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $130,645,000 after purchasing an additional 28,882 shares during the period. Finally, Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its position in KLA by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 17,846 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $11,246,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $806.00 on Friday. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $551.33 and a 12-month high of $896.32. The stock has a market cap of $106.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.89, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $685.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $687.44.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.08 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. KLA’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.26 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This is an increase from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.63%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total value of $5,078,136.96. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 28,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,867,606.76. This represents a 19.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of KLA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total value of $7,381,006.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,803,042. This trade represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on KLAC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer raised their target price on KLA from $700.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $725.00 target price (down previously from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Barclays lowered their price target on KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $802.74.

About KLA

KLA Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and marketing of 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 and Component Inspection.