Clare Market Investments LLC Takes $687,000 Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Clare Market Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,090 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $687,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its position in KLA by 32,828.8% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,419,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,647,708,000 after buying an additional 3,408,617 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in KLA by 114,444.5% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $215,809,000 after buying an additional 342,189 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its position in KLA by 10,766.7% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 228,200 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $176,720,000 after buying an additional 226,100 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in KLA in the fourth quarter worth $142,221,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in KLA by 84.2% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 441,053 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $277,916,000 after buying an additional 201,649 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KLA Price Performance

KLAC opened at $678.36 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $723.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $709.19. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $609.40 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.15 billion, a PE ratio of 28.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30.

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

KLA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.00%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KLAC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report 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 MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $831.68.

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.