KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Sold by Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd

Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd cut its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 93.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 73 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 1,108 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd’s holdings in KLA were worth $46,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in KLA by 344.5% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 32,051 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $20,196,000 after buying an additional 24,840 shares during the last quarter. Himension Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. lifted its holdings in shares of KLA by 1,717.2% in the fourth quarter. Himension Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. now owns 22,533 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $14,198,000 after buying an additional 21,293 shares during the period. Nutshell Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter valued at $2,710,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of KLA by 73.9% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 90,942 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $57,333,000 after purchasing an additional 38,642 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter valued at $51,000. 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 stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total value of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,867,606.76. This represents a 19.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on KLAC shares. Susquehanna upped their price target on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays raised their price objective on KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $832.17.

KLA Trading Up 17.3 %

Shares of KLAC stock opened at $703.31 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The firm has a market cap of $93.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.58, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a 50 day moving average of $708.82 and a 200-day moving average of $696.23. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $551.33 and a 12-month high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. KLA’s payout ratio is 28.60%.

KLA 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.