Sovran Advisors LLC Makes New $224,000 Investment in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Sovran Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 355 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $224,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in KLA during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the third quarter worth about $53,000. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in KLA in the 3rd quarter valued at about $56,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of KLAC stock opened at $764.28 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $101.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. KLA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $609.40 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $692.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $715.14.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. On average, analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer upgraded KLA from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $750.00 to $850.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $831.68.

About KLA

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.