KLA Corporation $KLAC Shares Newly Acquired by OPTIMAS CAPITAL Ltd

OPTIMAS CAPITAL Ltd purchased a new position in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 10,570 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,060,000. KLA makes up 2.7% of OPTIMAS CAPITAL Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in KLAC. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in KLA by 928.9% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,821,622 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,471,832,000 after acquiring an additional 13,381,153 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,522,430,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of KLA by 239.3% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,614,990 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,094,530,000 after purchasing an additional 3,959,927 shares during the period. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of KLA by 899.4% during the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 3,634,859 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,096,673,000 after purchasing an additional 3,271,158 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the third quarter worth approximately $377,898,000. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on KLA from $238.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $180.00 price target (up from $170.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, October 29th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective (down from $190.00) on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded KLA from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $220.35.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of KLAC stock traded up $8.69 during trading on Friday, hitting $138.49. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 15,336,108 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,115,061. The company has a current ratio of 2.76, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The company has a market cap of $180.45 billion, a PE ratio of 34.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.49. The business has a fifty day moving average of $174.83 and a 200-day moving average of $181.68. KLA Corporation has a 52 week low of $107.20 and a 52 week high of $307.37.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.04. KLA had a return on equity of 89.30% and a net margin of 36.25%. The business had revenue of $4.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.04 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $8.47 earnings per share. KLA’s quarterly revenue was up 28.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that KLA Corporation will post 5.73 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 16th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Brian Lorig sold 59,586 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.13, for a total value of $12,401,634.18. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 77,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,167,746.53. The trade was a 43.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 72,019 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.88, for a total transaction of $12,378,625.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 706,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $121,506,269. The trade was a 9.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 219,173 shares of company stock worth $42,201,914 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 79.39% of the company’s stock.

More KLA News

Here are the key news stories impacting KLA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KLA declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.23 per share, payable December 1 to shareholders of record November 16. The dividend provides a modest return to shareholders. KLA Declares Regular Cash Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: A bullish analysis highlights KLA’s strong quarterly results, AI-related demand, expanding margins, and upbeat guidance, including projected year-over-year revenue growth of 43% and EPS growth above 60% in the next quarter. KLA: Unfairly Caught Up In The Tech Carnage
• Positive Sentiment: Exchange-traded funds bought $52.3 million of KLAC shares on November 3, indicating institutional fund demand. ETFs Bought $52.3 Million of KLAC
• Neutral Sentiment: A report on a $17 billion hedge fund returning cash after a poor month discusses ownership and positioning in AI-chip stocks, including KLA. It may contribute to volatility, but does not by itself establish a change in KLA’s business outlook. Hedge Fund Returns Cash After Worst Month Since 2020
• Negative Sentiment: Unusually high put-option buying suggests some investors are hedging against, or betting on, downside in KLAC, a potentially bearish near-term signal. KLA Stock Sees Unusually High Put Option Buying

About KLA

KLA Corporation develops process-control and yield-management technologies used in the manufacture of semiconductors and other electronic products. Its systems help manufacturers detect defects, measure features and monitor production processes as they make increasingly complex devices.

The company’s products include inspection and metrology equipment, as well as software and related services. Its technologies support multiple stages of semiconductor production, from work on wafers and reticles to advanced packaging.