O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Sells 3,633 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 13.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,854 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 3,633 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $15,031,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KLAC. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of KLA in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in KLA by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new position in KLA in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment increased its position in shares of KLA by 82.3% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 4,515 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 2,038 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Down 3.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $673.60 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $727.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $702.72. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. KLA Co. has a 12 month low of $609.40 and a 12 month high of $896.32. The company has a market cap of $89.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.33, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $1.70 dividend. 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

Insider Transactions at KLA

In related news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.62, for a total value of $5,078,136.96. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $725.00 target price (down from $875.00) on shares of KLA in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $825.39.

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.