Oppenheimer Cuts KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Price Target to $700.00

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) had its price objective decreased by Oppenheimer from $850.00 to $700.00 in a research note published on Friday morning, MarketBeat reports. Oppenheimer currently has an outperform rating on the semiconductor company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on KLAC. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $725.00 price objective (down from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday, March 28th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $818.28.

KLA Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLAC opened at $670.22 on Friday. 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 has a 12 month low of $551.33 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The company has a market cap of $89.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $705.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $693.97.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. Sell-side analysts predict that KLA will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s payout ratio is 28.60%.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total value of $5,078,136.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,867,606.76. This represents a 19.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 300.0% in the 4th 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 period. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of KLA in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 160.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% 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.