Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC Sells 19 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 666 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 19 shares during the quarter. Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $387,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its stake in KLA by 22.5% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 3,096 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,800,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the period. Howe & Rusling Inc. boosted its position in KLA by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 6,484 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,769,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Concord Wealth Partners increased its holdings in shares of KLA by 58.7% in the fourth quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 768 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Mach 1 Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,274,000. Finally, Hartford Funds Management Co LLC lifted its stake in shares of KLA by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC now owns 1,204 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $700,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KLA Trading Up 2.1 %

KLAC opened at $696.59 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $93.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.49, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The company’s 50 day moving average is $687.46 and its 200-day moving average is $605.39. KLA Co. has a 1-year low of $369.66 and a 1-year high of $729.15.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The semiconductor company reported $5.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.94 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. KLA had a net margin of 27.19% and a return on equity of 102.37%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.49 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 23.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $5.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KLAC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of KLA from $605.00 to $760.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Berenberg Bank increased their target price on KLA from $670.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Citigroup boosted their price target on KLA from $725.00 to $760.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. StockNews.com raised KLA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on KLA in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $800.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $722.26.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $697.85, for a total value of $2,272,897.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,922 shares in the company, valued at $11,809,017.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,018 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.04, for a total value of $4,947,970.72. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 32,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,825,670. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Oreste Donzella sold 3,257 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $697.85, for a total value of $2,272,897.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,922 shares in the company, valued at $11,809,017.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About KLA

KLA Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets 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, Display and Component Inspection.