Aviance Capital Partners LLC Invests $2.48 Million in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Aviance Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,550 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,480,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 9,480 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $5,511,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of KLA by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,450 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $843,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft acquired a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,559,000. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in shares of KLA by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 39,668 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $23,059,000 after acquiring an additional 2,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its position in shares of KLA by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 26,626 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $15,478,000 after acquiring an additional 1,692 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

KLA Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC traded down $15.84 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $808.67. 73,976 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 902,001. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $440.15 and a twelve month high of $876.55. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $759.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $681.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $108.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.19, a PEG ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.14.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.94 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. KLA had a net margin of 27.19% and a return on equity of 102.37%. The business’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.49 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 23.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 14th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Susquehanna restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $675.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research report on Monday, April 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $800.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of KLA from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $747.40.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 14,009 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $716.63, for a total transaction of $10,039,269.67. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 93,142 shares in the company, valued at $66,748,351.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $788.58, for a total value of $803,563.02. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,356 shares in the company, valued at $24,726,714.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 14,009 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $716.63, for a total transaction of $10,039,269.67. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 93,142 shares in the company, valued at $66,748,351.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 22,861 shares of company stock worth $16,795,913 over the last three months. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

KLA Profile

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.