Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Reduces Stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 28.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 801 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 321 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $620,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Swedbank AB grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 550,949 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $426,660,000 after purchasing an additional 2,019 shares during the last quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC lifted its position in shares of KLA by 538.5% in the 3rd quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC now owns 7,445 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $5,765,000 after purchasing an additional 6,279 shares during the period. Eastern Bank lifted its position in shares of KLA by 655.8% in the 3rd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 27,368 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $21,194,000 after purchasing an additional 23,747 shares during the period. Generate Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of KLA by 39.0% in the 3rd quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd now owns 5,882 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,555,000 after purchasing an additional 1,651 shares during the period. Finally, Paragon Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of KLA in the 3rd quarter worth about $716,000. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Price Performance

KLAC stock opened at $614.46 on Friday. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $527.11 and a 52-week high of $896.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $722.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $763.28.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.03 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.75 billion. KLA had a return on equity of 105.16% and a net margin of 28.92%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 30.91 EPS for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This is an increase from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 26.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Argus raised their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of KLA from $680.00 to $675.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 11th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of KLA from $900.00 to $765.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of KLA from $890.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $802.90.

KLA Company 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.