KLA Corporation $KLAC Shares Purchased by First County Bank CT

First County Bank CT raised its holdings in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 869.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,020 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,986 shares during the period. KLA comprises 1.4% of First County Bank CT’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position. First County Bank CT’s holdings in KLA were worth $3,023,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Trust Co of the South increased its stake in shares of KLA by 900.0% during the second quarter. Trust Co of the South now owns 6,980 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,106,000 after purchasing an additional 6,282 shares in the last quarter. Union Heritage Capital LLC purchased a new position in KLA in the 1st quarter valued at $4,152,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 6.8% during the first quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 94 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. Orographic Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in KLA during the first quarter worth about $390,000. Finally, Kentucky Retirement Systems raised its holdings in KLA by 64.7% in the 1st quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems now owns 13,759 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $20,259,000 after acquiring an additional 5,404 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on KLAC. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price objective on KLA from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of KLA from $210.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $260.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Scotiabank set a $200.00 price target on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $195.00 price objective (down from $220.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One equities research 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $223.70.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 45,120 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.34, for a total value of $9,986,725.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 713,830 shares in the company, valued at approximately $157,996,990.71. The trade was a 5.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 4,504 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $880,532.00. Following the transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 156,499 shares of company stock valued at $34,248,710. Corporate insiders own 91.48% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of KLAC opened at $192.85 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $223.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $182.69. The stock has a market cap of $251.92 billion, a PE ratio of 52.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.45. KLA Corporation has a 1-year low of $83.22 and a 1-year high of $307.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 2.03.

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, analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 5.42 EPS for the current year.

KLA News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting KLA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: A broad semiconductor rally, fueled by renewed optimism surrounding artificial intelligence, strong memory demand and upcoming chip-industry earnings, supports the outlook for KLA’s wafer-inspection and process-control equipment. Semiconductor Rally Powers S&P 500 to Fresh Record High
• Positive Sentiment: KLA’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations: revenue rose 15.2% year over year to $3.66 billion, while EPS of $1.05 topped the $1.00 consensus estimate. Management also issued quarterly EPS guidance of $1.06 to $1.26, offering support for the company’s growth outlook.
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually high options activity, including elevated call volume, indicates that some traders are positioning for a rebound after the stock’s recent retreat. Options activity is a sentiment signal rather than a fundamental catalyst.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains broadly favorable, with a reported “Moderate Buy” consensus and several price targets above recent trading levels. However, KLA’s valuation is demanding, with a price-to-earnings ratio above 50, leaving the stock vulnerable to disappointment if semiconductor capital spending slows. KLA Stock Looks Fully Valued After Its Huge Run
• Negative Sentiment: CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 4,504 shares for approximately $881,000, while EVP Mary Beth Wilkinson sold 13,802 shares worth about $2.70 million. These transactions reduced their holdings by roughly 36% and 38%, respectively, adding to a recent pattern of insider selling.
• Negative Sentiment: DekaBank disclosed a roughly 90% reduction in its KLA position, equivalent to approximately 2.86 million shares valued near $862 million at the reporting date. Although the 13F reflects holdings as of June 30 rather than current trading, the disclosure may reinforce concerns about institutional profit-taking.

KLA Profile

KLA is a provider of process control and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related microelectronics industries. The company designs and manufactures equipment, software and services used by chipmakers to analyze and control manufacturing processes, detect defects, measure critical dimensions and improve yield across wafer fabrication, photomask and packaging operations. KLA’s offerings are aimed at enabling production of advanced logic, memory, and specialty devices at progressively smaller technology nodes and more complex package structures.

Its product portfolio includes optical and e-beam inspection systems, metrology tools for critical dimension and film measurement, mask and reticle inspection platforms, as well as enterprise software and data analytics that aggregate process data and drive automated process control.