Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC Invests $1.58 Million in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,513 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,583,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of KLAC. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in KLA by 0.4% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 550,949 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $426,660,000 after buying an additional 2,019 shares during the period. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC lifted its holdings in KLA by 28.0% in the third quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 370 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. abrdn plc lifted its holdings in KLA by 18.0% in the third quarter. abrdn plc now owns 66,596 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $51,318,000 after buying an additional 10,139 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in KLA by 46.8% in the third quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,076 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,382,000 after buying an additional 980 shares during the period. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its holdings in KLA by 3.3% in the third quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 1,550 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,200,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $725.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $831.68.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of KLAC opened at $738.52 on Thursday. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $609.40 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $713.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $715.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.06, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. Research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

KLA 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.