Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Grows Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,265 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 21 shares during the quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV’s holdings in KLA were worth $4,224,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its position in KLA by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 75 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the period. West Paces Advisors Inc. increased its stake in KLA by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 210 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $122,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Journey Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in KLA by 4.4% in the third quarter. Journey Advisory Group LLC now owns 502 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in KLA by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 507 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MWA Asset Management increased its stake in KLA by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. MWA Asset Management now owns 683 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $397,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 14,009 shares of KLA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $716.63, for a total value of $10,039,269.67. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 93,142 shares in the company, valued at $66,748,351.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Ahmad A. Khan sold 7,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $760.00, for a total value of $5,953,080.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 32,105 shares in the company, valued at $24,399,800. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 14,009 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $716.63, for a total transaction of $10,039,269.67. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 93,142 shares in the company, valued at approximately $66,748,351.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 33,136 shares of company stock worth $24,016,781. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Performance

NASDAQ:KLAC traded up $13.96 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $779.06. The stock had a trading volume of 548,554 shares, compared to its average volume of 812,077. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $418.12 and a twelve month high of $790.52. The stock has a market cap of $104.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.81, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 1.33. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $701.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $635.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.14.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.94 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. KLA had a net margin of 27.19% and a return on equity of 102.37%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.49 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 23.3 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $1.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. KLA’s payout ratio is 30.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup upped their price target on KLA from $725.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on KLA in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $800.00 price objective on the stock. Susquehanna reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $675.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on KLA from $692.00 to $698.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a research report on Friday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, KLA presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $727.15.

About KLA

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.