LPL Financial LLC Raises Stock Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

LPL Financial LLC raised its position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 95,988 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 1,082 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.07% of KLA worth $60,484,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in KLA during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 300.0% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD increased its holdings in KLA by 160.0% in the 4th quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC opened at $705.54 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $730.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $703.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The firm has a market cap of $93.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.67, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. KLA Co. has a 1-year low of $609.40 and a 1-year 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 for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $830.67.

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.