Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC Cuts Position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC decreased its position in shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 4.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 393 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 18 shares during the quarter. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $267,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in KLA in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in KLA in the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD boosted its holdings in KLA by 160.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Down 1.4%

KLAC opened at $889.87 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. KLA Corporation has a 1-year low of $551.33 and a 1-year high of $914.83. The company has a market capitalization of $117.68 billion, a PE ratio of 32.35, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.40. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $778.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $724.65.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.08 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. KLA had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 112.97%. The company’s revenue was up 35.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.26 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

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

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on KLAC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of KLA from $870.00 to $868.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of KLA from $690.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $815.39.

Insider Activity

In other KLA news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 10,802 shares of KLA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.30, for a total value of $7,381,006.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,803,042. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 1,019 shares of KLA 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 27,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,291,492.34. This represents a 3.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

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.