Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Grows Stock Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 115.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,259 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 33,413 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in KLA were worth $36,191,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KLAC. Blair William & Co. IL grew its stake in KLA by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 22,566 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $8,261,000 after buying an additional 413 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of KLA by 34.9% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 80,289 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $29,382,000 after purchasing an additional 20,773 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC grew its position in shares of KLA by 183.1% during the 1st quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 4,374 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,601,000 after purchasing an additional 2,829 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of KLA by 32.9% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 924 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $338,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. grew its position in shares of KLA by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 50,684 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $18,553,000 after purchasing an additional 2,151 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KLAC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $525.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Susquehanna reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $675.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research report on Monday, April 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of KLA from $560.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $800.00 target price for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $800.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, KLA presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $688.42.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $680.00 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $91.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $683.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $590.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $355.88 and a 12 month high of $729.15.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The semiconductor company reported $6.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.91 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46 billion. KLA had a net margin of 27.98% and a return on equity of 107.56%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $7.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 22.65 EPS for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 19th were paid a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.46%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,018 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.04, for a total value of $4,947,970.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 32,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,825,670. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $697.85, for a total value of $2,272,897.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,809,017.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,018 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.04, for a total transaction of $4,947,970.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 32,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,825,670. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Profile

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.