KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC – Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Monday, Zacks reports.
KLAC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of KLA in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $225.00 price target on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $260.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $250.00 price objective on KLA and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and set a $195.00 target price (down from $220.00) on shares of KLA in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $222.22.
Get Our Latest Research Report on KLAC
KLA Stock Performance
KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.61 billion. KLA had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 87.66%. KLA’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.94 EPS. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that KLA will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other KLA news, CAO Virendra A. Kirloskar sold 4,504 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $880,532.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,558,526. This represents a 36.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bren Higgins sold 27,701 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.69, for a total value of $7,359,878.69. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 263,472 shares in the company, valued at $70,001,875.68. The trade was a 9.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 271,040 shares of company stock valued at $54,263,333 in the last ninety days. 79.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of KLAC. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in KLA by 928.9% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,821,622 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,471,832,000 after purchasing an additional 13,381,153 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in KLA in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,522,430,000. National Pension Service raised its holdings in KLA by 899.4% in the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 3,634,859 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,096,673,000 after purchasing an additional 3,271,158 shares during the period. NEOS Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in KLA by 987.0% in the second quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 979,371 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $295,486,000 after purchasing an additional 889,269 shares during the period. Finally, Railway Pension Investments Ltd boosted its position in shares of KLA by 960.4% during the second quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 926,652 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $279,580,000 after purchasing an additional 839,265 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.
KLA Company Profile
KLA Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC) develops process-control and yield-management solutions used by semiconductor and electronics manufacturers. Its systems help customers detect defects, measure and analyze materials and structures, and monitor manufacturing processes throughout the production of integrated circuits and other advanced electronic components.
The company’s product portfolio includes inspection and metrology systems, wafer and reticle inspection equipment, process-control software, data analytics tools, and related services.
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