Nutshell Asset Management Ltd Makes New $2.71 Million Investment in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Nutshell Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,300 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,710,000. KLA makes up approximately 1.7% of Nutshell Asset Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of KLA by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 648 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $443,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in KLA by 27.6% during the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,778 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $6,161,000 after purchasing an additional 2,112 shares during the period. Milestone Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in KLA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,563,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc increased its holdings in KLA by 15.2% in the fourth quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 60,834 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $38,326,000 after buying an additional 8,028 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,190,000. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $576.53 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $76.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $716.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $700.07. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $559.76 and a twelve month high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. On average, research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total transaction of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,867,606.76. This trade represents a 19.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KLAC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna lifted their price target on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $832.17.

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.