Louisbourg Investments Inc. Sells 30 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Louisbourg Investments Inc. reduced its position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 1.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,186 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 30 shares during the quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $1,486,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Norges Bank bought a new stake in KLA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,175,756,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in KLA by 95,141.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,674,347 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,138,221,000 after purchasing an additional 1,672,589 shares during the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its position in KLA by 381.3% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 733,328 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $462,085,000 after purchasing an additional 580,967 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in KLA by 114,444.5% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 342,488 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $215,809,000 after purchasing an additional 342,189 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in KLA by 33.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,191,262 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $750,638,000 after purchasing an additional 300,015 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $766.46, for a total transaction of $781,022.74. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 27,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,291,492.34. The trade was a 3.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total transaction of $7,381,006.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 78,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,803,042. This trade represents a 12.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 18,829 shares of company stock valued at $13,240,166. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $800.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $590.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $795.39.

KLA Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $892.38 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. KLA Co. has a 52 week low of $551.33 and a 52 week high of $896.32. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $740.39 and its 200 day moving average is $710.94. The company has a market cap of $118.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.53, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.40.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. KLA had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.26 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

KLA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $1.90 per share. This is an increase from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. KLA’s payout ratio is presently 27.63%.

About KLA

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.