Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires 66 Shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,935 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the quarter. KLA makes up approximately 1.5% of Shoker Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $4,370,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of KLA during the third quarter worth $29,000. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its holdings 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. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA bought a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of KLA in the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com lowered shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of KLA from $760.00 to $725.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped 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. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $831.68.

KLA Stock Performance

KLAC stock opened at $699.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $92.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.40, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. KLA Co. has a twelve month low of $609.40 and a twelve month high of $896.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $715.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $715.74.

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

KLA Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.97%. KLA’s payout ratio 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.