KLA Corporation $KLAC Stock: Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Grows Stake

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its stake in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 7.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 275,745 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 19,700 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in KLA were worth $53,751,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in KLA by 928.9% in the 2nd 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 during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,522,430,000. National Pension Service lifted its stake in KLA by 899.4% in the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 3,634,859 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,096,673,000 after purchasing an additional 3,271,158 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of KLA by 239.3% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,614,990 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,094,530,000 after buying an additional 3,959,927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PineStone Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of KLA by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,418,400 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $471,419,000 after acquiring an additional 248,700 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 59,586 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.13, for a total value of $12,401,634.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 77,681 shares in the company, valued at $16,167,746.53. This trade represents a 43.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 4,504 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $880,532.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,558,526. This trade represents a 36.10% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 243,339 shares of company stock valued at $46,903,454 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 79.39% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

KLAC stock opened at $166.40 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 2.03. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $186.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $197.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $217.15 billion, a PE ratio of 45.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.45. KLA Corporation has a 1 year low of $107.20 and a 1 year high of $307.37.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.66 billion during 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 quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.94 EPS. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that KLA Corporation will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th were issued a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. This is a positive change from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KLAC shares. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $180.00 target price (up from $170.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $250.00 price objective on KLA and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $221.26.

KLA Company Profile

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC) develops process control, inspection and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and other advanced manufacturing industries. Its technologies help manufacturers identify defects, measure critical dimensions and monitor production processes to improve quality, reliability and manufacturing efficiency.

The company’s product portfolio includes wafer and reticle inspection systems, metrology and measurement tools, defect review and classification systems, and software for analyzing manufacturing data.