KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,660,000 shares, a decline of 15.0% from the January 15th total of 3,130,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,180,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s shares are sold short.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC stock traded down $13.54 on Monday, hitting $750.74. The company had a trading volume of 998,457 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,191,620. KLA has a 12-month low of $609.40 and a 12-month high of $896.32. 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 stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $697.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $714.23. The stock has a market cap of $99.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.28.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that KLA will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.60%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in KLA by 300.0% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in KLA in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $831.68.

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.