Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Reduces Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. decreased its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 312,906 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 52,384 shares during the quarter. KLA makes up approximately 1.2% of Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned about 0.23% of KLA worth $257,994,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in KLA by 2,205.8% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 201,592 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $166,215,000 after purchasing an additional 192,849 shares in the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,266,000. Holderness Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 2.7% in the second quarter. Holderness Investments Co. now owns 3,185 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,626,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Profund Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of KLA by 5.7% during the second quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 22,004 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $18,143,000 after acquiring an additional 1,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in KLA by 32.2% during the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 24,425 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $20,139,000 after acquiring an additional 5,943 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of KLA from $960.00 to $900.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. StockNews.com lowered shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $950.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $812.80.

KLA Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of KLAC stock opened at $758.85 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $102.17 billion, a PE ratio of 39.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.28. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $440.15 and a 52-week high of $896.32. The business’s fifty day moving average is $772.98 and its 200 day moving average is $755.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 2.15.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The semiconductor company reported $6.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.15 by $0.45. The firm had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 103.50% and a net margin of 28.15%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.40 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 29.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.38%.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other KLA news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of KLA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total transaction of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 105,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,257,998.29. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 825 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $649.84, for a total value of $536,118.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,749,473.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 17,437 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.01, for a total transaction of $12,293,259.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 105,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,257,998.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,917 shares of company stock valued at $14,568,247. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

About KLA

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.