KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Down 5% – Time to Sell?

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) shares were down 5% on Friday. The stock traded as low as $165.20 and last traded at $165.74. 13,100,458 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 18% from the average session volume of 11,097,257 shares. The stock had previously closed at $174.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on KLAC. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a report on Monday, July 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on KLA from $210.00 to $317.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Susquehanna set a $215.00 price objective on shares of KLA and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $221.26.

KLA Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average of $187.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $196.86. 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 company has a market cap of $216.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.45.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.05. KLA had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 87.66%. The business had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.94 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that KLA Corporation will post 5.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th were given a dividend of $0.23 per share. 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 yield of 0.6%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.07%.

Insider Activity

In other KLA news, EVP MaryBeth Wilkinson sold 13,802 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $2,698,291.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 22,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,322,505. The trade was a 38.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard Wallace sold 72,019 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.88, for a total value of $12,378,625.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 706,925 shares in the company, valued at approximately $121,506,269. The trade was a 9.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 243,339 shares of company stock valued at $46,903,454 in the last ninety days. 79.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the third quarter valued at approximately $376,000. Aspiriant LLC boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 20.8% in the 3rd quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 1,438 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Pension & Wealth Management Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the 3rd quarter valued at $314,000. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the third quarter worth $6,937,000. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of KLA by 343.5% in the third quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,546 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,276,000 after acquiring an additional 5,070 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Company Profile

KLA Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC) develops process-control and yield-management solutions used by semiconductor and electronics manufacturers. Its systems help customers detect defects, measure and analyze materials and structures, and monitor manufacturing processes throughout the production of integrated circuits and other advanced electronic components.

The company’s product portfolio includes inspection and metrology systems, wafer and reticle inspection equipment, process-control software, data analytics tools, and related services.