Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Reduces Stock Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lessened its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 2.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 605 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 15 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $423,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whitaker Myers Wealth Managers LTD. acquired a new stake in KLA in the 1st quarter worth about $248,000. FCF Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in KLA in the 1st quarter worth about $2,606,000. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its stake in KLA by 21.1% in the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 1,497 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,046,000 after buying an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group boosted its stake in KLA by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 1,300 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $908,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Paragon Capital Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the 1st quarter valued at about $211,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $813.30 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $748.89 and its 200-day moving average is $676.62. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. KLA Co. has a 1-year low of $440.15 and a 1-year high of $876.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.50 billion, a PE ratio of 42.60, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 1.28.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.94 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 102.37% and a net margin of 27.19%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.49 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 23.3 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th were paid a $1.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. KLA’s payout ratio is 30.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KLAC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on KLA in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $800.00 price objective on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Barclays raised KLA from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $630.00 to $765.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on KLA in a research report on Monday, May 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $820.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on KLA from $725.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $747.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $788.58, for a total transaction of $803,563.02. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,356 shares in the company, valued at $24,726,714.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other KLA news, insider Ahmad A. Khan sold 7,833 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $760.00, for a total value of $5,953,080.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 32,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,399,800. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $788.58, for a total value of $803,563.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,726,714.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 22,861 shares of company stock valued at $16,795,913. Company insiders own 0.12% 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.