KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Issues Q3 Earnings Guidance

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) issued an update on its third quarter earnings guidance on Monday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of $4.23-5.43 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of $5.29. The company issued revenue guidance of $2.175-2.425 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $2.32 billion. KLA also updated its Q3 2024 guidance to 4.230-5.430 EPS.

KLA Stock Performance

KLA stock traded up $6.80 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $690.70. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 797,866 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,017,944. The firm has a market cap of $93.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.08, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.34. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $640.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $558.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. KLA has a twelve month low of $355.88 and a twelve month high of $729.15.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The semiconductor company reported $6.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.91 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46 billion. KLA had a net margin of 27.98% and a return on equity of 107.56%. The firm’s revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.38 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that KLA will post 22.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 19th were issued a $1.45 dividend. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on KLAC. TD Cowen raised their target price on KLA from $525.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. New Street Research began coverage on KLA in a research note on Monday, December 18th. They issued a buy rating and a $730.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on KLA from $535.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Susquehanna cut KLA from a positive rating to a neutral rating and raised their target price for the company from $640.00 to $675.00 in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of KLA in a research note on Wednesday, November 22nd. They set a neutral rating and a $550.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $635.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KLA

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC increased its stake in KLA by 23.9% in the 1st quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 399 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $159,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in KLA during the 1st quarter valued at about $130,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in KLA by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 274 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in KLA during the 2nd quarter valued at about $117,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in KLA during the 1st quarter valued at about $104,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.49% of the company’s stock.

KLA Company 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.