Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC Makes New $6.78 Million Investment in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 9,967 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,776,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in KLA in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of KLA by 527.3% during the 1st quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 69 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HM Payson & Co. lifted its holdings in KLA by 270.0% during the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 74 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 39 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.50, for a total transaction of $34,768.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,616 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,332,164. The trade was a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total value of $781,022.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 27,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,291,492.34. This represents a 3.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,860 shares of company stock valued at $8,196,798 in the last 90 days. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $924.58 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. KLA Corporation has a 1-year low of $551.33 and a 1-year high of $932.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.42. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $826.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $744.14.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.08 by $0.33. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.26 earnings per share. KLA’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $1.90 per share. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. KLA’s payout ratio is presently 27.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KLAC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $920.00 target price (up from $870.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on KLA in a report on Thursday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $980.00 price target for the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $830.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on KLA from $690.00 to $740.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $840.33.

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.