KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Bought by Norinchukin Bank The

Norinchukin Bank The raised its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 7.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 7,130 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 489 shares during the period. Norinchukin Bank The’s holdings in KLA were worth $4,493,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in KLA by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 160.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total value of $5,078,136.96. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,867,606.76. This represents a 19.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on KLAC. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup cut their price target on KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised KLA from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $748.00 to $870.00 in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $814.11.

KLA Stock Down 1.2 %

KLAC stock opened at $634.43 on Friday. 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 has a 50-day moving average of $695.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $690.32. The company has a market cap of $84.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.68, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $551.33 and a 12 month high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. As a group, analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

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.