KLA Corporation $KLAC Shares Sold by State of Alaska Department of Revenue

State of Alaska Department of Revenue cut its holdings in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 3.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 136,820 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 4,225 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in KLA were worth $26,669,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its position in shares of KLA by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 94 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA by 36.4% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 60 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $88,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc raised its position in shares of KLA by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 1,783 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,625,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the period. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 28.2% during the 1st quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 100 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $147,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in KLA by 3.3% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 822 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,211,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

KLAC stock traded down $6.01 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $172.80. 6,280,287 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,047,925. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $107.20 and a fifty-two week high of $307.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.88. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $187.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $196.64. The stock has a market cap of $225.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.10, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.45.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.94 EPS. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. Research analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on KLAC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $195.00 price objective (down from $220.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Susquehanna set a $215.00 price objective on KLA and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of KLA from $200.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $250.00 target price on shares of KLA and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $221.26.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 4,504 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $880,532.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,558,526. The trade was a 36.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard Wallace sold 72,019 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.88, for a total transaction of $12,378,625.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 706,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $121,506,269. The trade was a 9.25% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 243,339 shares of company stock worth $46,903,454. 79.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About KLA

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.