Cullinan Associates Inc. Purchases 52,452 Shares of KLA Corporation $KLAC

Cullinan Associates Inc. increased its position in KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 729.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 59,643 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 52,452 shares during the period. KLA comprises approximately 1.4% of Cullinan Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. Cullinan Associates Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $17,995,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in KLA by 928.9% during the 2nd 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 last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of KLA in the second quarter worth $2,522,430,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of KLA by 978.2% during the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 858,984 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $259,164,000 after purchasing an additional 779,317 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of KLA during the second quarter valued at $163,950,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its position in shares of KLA by 781.5% during the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 359,277 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $108,397,000 after buying an additional 318,520 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at KLA

In other KLA news, EVP Mary Beth Wilkinson sold 13,802 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.50, for a total value of $2,698,291.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 22,110 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,322,505. This trade represents a 38.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brian Lorig sold 59,586 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.13, for a total transaction of $12,401,634.18. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 77,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,167,746.53. The trade was a 43.41% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 258,533 shares of company stock valued at $55,977,470 in the last quarter. Insiders own 91.48% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Down 4.5%

KLAC stock opened at $175.54 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $229.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.88. The business’s 50-day moving average is $213.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.58. KLA Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $83.22 and a fifty-two week high of $307.37.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.05. KLA had a return on equity of 87.66% and a net margin of 35.57%.The business had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.94 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. KLA has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.060-1.260 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that KLA Corporation will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. This is a positive change from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on KLAC shares. Scotiabank set a $200.00 price objective on KLA in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $325.00 price target on shares of KLA in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $200.00 to $238.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Thursday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $223.70.

Trending Headlines about KLA

Here are the key news stories impacting KLA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KLA’s AI exposure remains a long-term support. Its process-control tools are viewed as important to improving yields in advanced packaging and increasingly complex semiconductor manufacturing. What KLA’s AI-Fueled Advanced Packaging Momentum Means For Shareholders
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results exceeded expectations: revenue reached $3.66 billion, up 15.2% year over year, while EPS topped consensus. Management’s next-quarter EPS guidance of $1.06–$1.26 also points to continued growth. Analysts cited by Zacks see meaningful potential upside, although price targets are not a guarantee. Wall Street Analysts Think KLA Could Surge
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary remains constructive on KLA’s role as a potential “yield bottleneck” beneficiary of AI chip production and advanced manufacturing investment. KLA: The AI Yield Bottleneck Is Becoming More Valuable
• Neutral Sentiment: There was no clear new company-specific catalyst. The move instead reflects broader weakness across chip-equipment names, including declines in major semiconductor stocks that weighed on the Nasdaq-100 ETF and KLAC.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may have considered KLA’s strong earnings insufficient relative to elevated expectations; the stock sold off after its late-July report despite beating estimates. Comparisons with faster-growing semiconductor names also weakened its near-term appeal. KLAC vs. SNDK: Which Semiconductor Stock is a Better Buy Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider activity is a headwind: KLA insiders reported open-market sales but no purchases over the past six months, including sales by senior executives. Investors also remain wary that export restrictions or weaker China demand could pressure sales and services.

KLA Company Profile

KLA is a provider of process control and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related microelectronics industries. The company designs and manufactures equipment, software and services used by chipmakers to analyze and control manufacturing processes, detect defects, measure critical dimensions and improve yield across wafer fabrication, photomask and packaging operations. KLA’s offerings are aimed at enabling production of advanced logic, memory, and specialty devices at progressively smaller technology nodes and more complex package structures.

Its product portfolio includes optical and e-beam inspection systems, metrology tools for critical dimension and film measurement, mask and reticle inspection platforms, as well as enterprise software and data analytics that aggregate process data and drive automated process control.