Shares of KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC – Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twenty have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $262.0857.
Several brokerages recently weighed in on KLAC. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $2,250.00 price objective (up from $1,700.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on KLA from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on KLA from $150.50 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $218.00 price target (up from $177.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Thursday, April 30th.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on KLA
KLA Price Performance
KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The semiconductor company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.92 by $0.02. KLA had a return on equity of 91.89% and a net margin of 35.66%.The company had revenue of $3.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.84 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.5% on a year-over-year basis. KLA has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 8.870-10.870 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that KLA will post 37.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
KLA declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, March 12th that allows the company to repurchase $7.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 3.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.
KLA Cuts Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.04%.
Key Headlines Impacting KLA
Here are the key news stories impacting KLA this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Analysts say the AI boom is improving the outlook for wafer-fabrication equipment demand, which is lifting shares of KLA and other chip-equipment names. Applied Materials, KLA stocks gain as AI boom lifts chip equipment outlook
- Positive Sentiment: Barclays reiterated an Overweight view on KLA, and multiple recent price-target hikes suggest Wall Street sees more upside after the company’s strong earnings and AI-focused guidance. Applied Materials and KLA Are Surging. Why You Should Buy the Stocks, Says This Analyst.
- Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights KLA’s earnings beat, higher price targets, and continued demand for process-control tools as supportive catalysts for the stock. Why KLA Corporation Stock Edged Past the Broader Market Today
- Neutral Sentiment: Several articles point to KLA’s upcoming 10-for-1 stock split, which may be drawing extra attention but does not change the company’s fundamentals. Dear KLA Stock Fans, Mark Your Calendars for June 12
- Negative Sentiment: CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 4,512 shares in a disclosed insider transaction, which can slightly pressure sentiment even though the sale was small relative to his remaining holdings. Richard P. Wallace insider sale filing
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, CEO Richard P. Wallace sold 45,120 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.34, for a total transaction of $9,986,725.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 713,830 shares in the company, valued at $157,996,990.71. This represents a 5.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 91.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Institutional Trading of KLA
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KLAC. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its holdings in shares of KLA by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 94 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Motco grew its stake in KLA by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Motco now owns 405 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $492,000 after buying an additional 7 shares during the last quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC increased its position in KLA by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 7 shares during the period. SouthState Bank Corp lifted its stake in KLA by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. SouthState Bank Corp now owns 111 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $135,000 after buying an additional 7 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Michigan Advisors LLC lifted its stake in KLA by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. West Michigan Advisors LLC now owns 305 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $371,000 after buying an additional 8 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
KLA Company Profile
KLA is a provider of process control and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related microelectronics industries. The company designs and manufactures equipment, software and services used by chipmakers to analyze and control manufacturing processes, detect defects, measure critical dimensions and improve yield across wafer fabrication, photomask and packaging operations. KLA’s offerings are aimed at enabling production of advanced logic, memory, and specialty devices at progressively smaller technology nodes and more complex package structures.
Its product portfolio includes optical and e-beam inspection systems, metrology tools for critical dimension and film measurement, mask and reticle inspection platforms, as well as enterprise software and data analytics that aggregate process data and drive automated process control.
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