Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas Takes Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 6,069 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,700,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. CVA Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 3.7% in the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 366 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $283,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 0.4% in the second quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 3,249 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,679,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 1.2% in the second quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,280 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,055,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Greystone Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 1.3% in the second quarter. Greystone Financial Group LLC now owns 1,188 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $980,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marcum Wealth LLC raised its holdings in KLA by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 384 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $297,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

KLA Price Performance

Shares of KLAC opened at $647.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.13. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $680.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $751.66. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $542.41 and a 52-week high of $896.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.54 billion, a PE ratio of 29.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.27.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.75 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.74 EPS. KLA’s quarterly revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 30.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. This is an increase from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is 31.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on KLAC. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on KLA from $870.00 to $800.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on KLA from $890.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on KLA from $760.00 to $725.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Oppenheimer raised KLA from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $750.00 to $850.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $750.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $812.30.

KLA Company Profile

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.