B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG Makes New Investment in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 7,771 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,018,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its position in shares of KLA by 95.2% during the 3rd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 1,767 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,368,000 after purchasing an additional 862 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 14.1% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,509 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,717,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC boosted its holdings in KLA by 11.4% during the third quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 771 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $597,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KLA in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $492,000. Finally, Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its stake in KLA by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 17,764 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $13,756,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KLAC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $925.00 price objective on shares of KLA in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Argus raised their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of KLA from $680.00 to $675.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $802.90.

KLA Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $615.66 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.35 billion, a PE ratio of 28.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $719.23 and a 200-day moving average of $763.35. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $527.11 and a 52-week high of $896.32.

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

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. KLA’s payout ratio is 26.48%.

KLA 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.