Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Sells 15 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lessened its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 2.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 590 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 15 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $486,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in KLA during the second quarter valued at $65,000. Berkshire Bank boosted its position in KLA by 15.4% during the second quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 374 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group bought a new stake in KLA during the second quarter valued at $440,000. Csenge Advisory Group boosted its position in shares of KLA by 25.6% during the 2nd quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 1,242 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,024,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of KLA by 102.3% during the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 87 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on KLAC. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $950.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $860.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of KLA from $730.00 to $680.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $805.29.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In related news, insider Ahmad A. Khan sold 7,833 shares of KLA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $760.00, for a total value of $5,953,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,399,800. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $788.58, for a total value of $803,563.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,726,714.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Ahmad A. Khan sold 7,833 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $760.00, for a total transaction of $5,953,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,399,800. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 29,769 shares of company stock worth $21,324,890 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ:KLAC traded down $5.51 on Friday, hitting $746.78. The stock had a trading volume of 763,594 shares, compared to its average volume of 935,573. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 2.15. The stock has a market cap of $100.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.27. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $440.15 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $803.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $728.14.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.15 by $0.45. KLA had a net margin of 28.15% and a return on equity of 103.50%. The company had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.40 EPS. KLA’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 29.09 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 30.38%.

About KLA

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.