Prudential Financial Inc. Has $49.26 Million Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Prudential Financial Inc. decreased its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 12.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 78,168 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 10,794 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.06% of KLA worth $49,255,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parnassus Investments LLC increased its position in KLA by 381.3% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 733,328 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $462,085,000 after buying an additional 580,967 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of KLA by 114,444.5% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $215,809,000 after acquiring an additional 342,189 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its stake in shares of KLA by 10,766.7% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 228,200 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $176,720,000 after acquiring an additional 226,100 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in KLA during the fourth quarter worth $142,221,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in KLA by 84.2% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 441,053 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $277,916,000 after purchasing an additional 201,649 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KLA Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of KLA stock opened at $721.85 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.92 billion, a PE ratio of 30.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. 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 firm’s 50 day moving average is $730.67 and its 200 day moving average is $703.37. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $609.40 and a 1 year high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on KLAC. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna upped their target price on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $830.67.

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.