Bridges Investment Management Inc. Sells 192 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Bridges Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 51,506 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 192 shares during the quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $32,455,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hickory Point Bank & Trust bought a new position in KLA in the 4th quarter worth about $331,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of KLA by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 1,286 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $810,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. raised its holdings in KLA by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. now owns 705 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its position in KLA by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 2,585 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,629,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 5,867 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,697,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on KLAC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lifted their price objective on KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com cut KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $831.68.

KLA Price Performance

KLA stock opened at $708.84 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $716.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $714.86. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market cap of $94.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. KLA Co. has a 12-month low of $609.40 and a 12-month high of $896.32.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 EPS 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%. Equities analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.60%.

KLA Company 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.