Xponance Inc. Acquires 3,443 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 10.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,373 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,443 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $22,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC raised its position in KLA by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $259,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its position in KLA by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 253 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $160,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. raised its position in KLA by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 246 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $155,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC raised its position in KLA by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 755 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $476,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 582 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $451,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KLAC. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com cut shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, KLA has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $830.67.

KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ KLAC opened at $718.29 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $727.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $705.16. 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 company has a market cap of $95.45 billion, a PE ratio of 30.21, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $609.40 and a 1 year high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced 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, analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. KLA’s payout ratio is 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.