FY2025 EPS Estimates for KLA Increased by Cantor Fitzgerald

KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) – Equities researchers at Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their FY2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of KLA in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, May 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst C. Muse now anticipates that the semiconductor company will post earnings per share of $32.47 for the year, up from their previous estimate of $31.62. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has a “Neutral” rating and a $800.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for KLA’s current full-year earnings is $31.59 per share.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on KLAC. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of KLA from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on KLA from $750.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup decreased their target price on KLA from $910.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on KLA from $950.00 to $900.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $802.74.

KLA Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of KLAC stock opened at $698.16 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 fifty-two week low of $551.33 and a fifty-two week high of $896.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $679.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $683.40. The stock has a market cap of $92.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.08 by $0.33. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.26 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 35.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

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

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In other news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $20,867,606.76. The trade was a 19.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KLA

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its position 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 worth $30,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in KLA during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in KLA in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in KLA in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of KLA during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 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.