KLA Corporation $KLAC Holdings Lowered by Kessler Investment Group LLC

Kessler Investment Group LLC lowered its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 37,713 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 3,916 shares during the quarter. KLA comprises 3.4% of Kessler Investment Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Kessler Investment Group LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $7,351,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of KLA by 928.9% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,821,622 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,471,832,000 after purchasing an additional 13,381,153 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,522,430,000. National Pension Service lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 899.4% during the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 3,634,859 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,096,673,000 after buying an additional 3,271,158 shares in the last quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in KLA by 987.0% in the 2nd quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 979,371 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $295,486,000 after buying an additional 889,269 shares during the period. Finally, Railway Pension Investments Ltd boosted its holdings in KLA by 960.4% in the 2nd quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 926,652 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $279,580,000 after buying an additional 839,265 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ:KLAC traded down $0.96 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $195.87. The stock had a trading volume of 3,169,746 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,069,603. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $187.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $195.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 2.03. KLA Corporation has a one year low of $98.10 and a one year high of $307.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $255.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.45.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.61 billion. KLA had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 87.66%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.94 earnings per share. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. Research analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is 25.07%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Richard Wallace sold 87,568 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.95, for a total value of $17,421,653.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 778,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $154,970,908.80. This represents a 10.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brian Lorig sold 59,586 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.13, for a total transaction of $12,401,634.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 77,681 shares in the company, valued at $16,167,746.53. The trade was a 43.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 243,339 shares of company stock worth $46,903,454 over the last three months. Company insiders own 79.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on KLA from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Susquehanna set a $215.00 price target on KLA and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $260.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded KLA from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.26.

KLA Profile

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC) develops process-control and yield-management solutions used by semiconductor and electronics manufacturers. Its systems help customers detect defects, measure and analyze materials and structures, and monitor manufacturing processes throughout the production of integrated circuits and other advanced electronic components.

The company’s product portfolio includes inspection and metrology systems, wafer and reticle inspection equipment, process-control software, data analytics tools, and related services.