Nwam LLC Invests $435,000 in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Nwam LLC bought a new position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 562 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $435,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the first quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Caxton Associates LP boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 3.7% during the first quarter. Caxton Associates LP now owns 2,853 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,993,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,555,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 0.6% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 223,090 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $155,844,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 9.2% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,766,000 after purchasing an additional 577 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $639.55 on Monday. KLA Co. has a 1-year low of $527.11 and a 1-year high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $710.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $760.93. The company has a market capitalization of $85.55 billion, a PE ratio of 29.20, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.29.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.03 by $0.30. KLA had a return on equity of 105.16% and a net margin of 28.92%. The firm had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 30.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This is an increase from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on KLAC. Citigroup dropped their price objective on KLA from $960.00 to $900.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com upgraded KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays decreased their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $750.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $925.00 target price on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, KLA presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $815.55.

About KLA

KLA Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and marketing of 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 and Component Inspection.