KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Sold by Aptus Capital Advisors LLC

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 28.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 801 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 321 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $620,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the first quarter valued at $379,678,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in KLA by 76,452.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 302,382 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $234,168,000 after buying an additional 301,987 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of KLA by 25.7% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,399,367 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,083,684,000 after purchasing an additional 286,015 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in KLA by 6,188.5% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 239,404 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $185,397,000 after buying an additional 235,597 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of KLA by 2,205.8% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 201,592 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $166,215,000 after acquiring an additional 192,849 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on KLAC shares. 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 report on Thursday, September 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $750.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of KLA from $890.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, KLA currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $802.90.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $614.46 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $722.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $763.28. The company has a market cap of $82.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.47, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.29. KLA Co. has a one year low of $527.11 and a one year high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.03 by $0.30. KLA had a net margin of 28.92% and a return on equity of 105.16%. The firm had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 30.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.48%.

About KLA

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.