Beta Wealth Group Inc. Grows Stock Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Beta Wealth Group Inc. boosted its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 33.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 658 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Beta Wealth Group Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $415,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Creative Planning raised its stake in shares of KLA by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 39,771 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $29,796,000 after buying an additional 5,519 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its stake in KLA by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 550,949 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $426,660,000 after purchasing an additional 2,019 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 25.6% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 692 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $536,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in KLA by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 735 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $569,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its position in KLA by 5.5% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 141,822 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $109,828,000 after acquiring an additional 7,435 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $750.74 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $697.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $714.23. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $609.40 and a 12-month high of $896.32. The company has a market cap of $99.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.28.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its 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%. Research analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. KLA’s payout ratio is 28.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on KLAC shares. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on 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 raised their price target on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $831.68.

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.