Apriem Advisors Has $1.71 Million Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Apriem Advisors reduced its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 32.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,708 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 1,319 shares during the period. Apriem Advisors’ holdings in KLA were worth $1,706,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KLAC. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 32,828.8% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,419,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,647,708,000 after buying an additional 3,408,617 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in KLA by 25.7% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,399,367 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,083,684,000 after acquiring an additional 286,015 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in KLA by 10,766.7% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 228,200 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $176,720,000 after purchasing an additional 226,100 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in KLA by 84.2% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 441,053 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $277,916,000 after purchasing an additional 201,649 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the third quarter worth approximately $128,482,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ KLAC opened at $738.52 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 company has a market cap of $98.14 billion, a PE ratio of 31.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. KLA Co. has a 52 week low of $609.40 and a 52 week high of $896.32. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $713.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $715.86.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 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%. Research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KLAC has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of KLA from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the company from $750.00 to $850.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average 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.