Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Boosts Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,562 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 20 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $1,984,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Cedar Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in KLA by 77.3% during the 1st quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 39 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in KLA during the second quarter valued at $30,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in KLA during the first quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the 2nd quarter worth about $53,000. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on KLAC. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of KLA from $900.00 to $765.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $804.57.

Insider Activity at KLA

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total transaction of $12,293,259.37. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 105,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,257,998.29. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 825 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $649.84, for a total transaction of $536,118.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,749,473.04. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of KLA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total value of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 105,329 shares in the company, valued at $74,257,998.29. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 20,873 shares of company stock worth $14,532,193 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC opened at $673.61 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $90.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $769.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $764.81. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $452.01 and a 52-week high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.15 by $0.45. KLA had a return on equity of 103.50% and a net margin of 28.15%. The company had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.40 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 29.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $1.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.38%.

KLA Company Profile

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.