Parnassus Investments LLC Boosts Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Parnassus Investments LLC increased its holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 381.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 733,328 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 580,967 shares during the quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC’s holdings in KLA were worth $462,085,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Swedbank AB increased its stake in KLA by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 550,949 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $426,660,000 after acquiring an additional 2,019 shares during the last quarter. United Bank bought a new stake in KLA in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $339,000. Sigma Planning Corp increased its stake in KLA by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 725 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $561,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in KLA by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 386 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in KLA in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $877,000. 86.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KLA Price Performance

KLAC opened at $681.50 on Friday. KLA Co. has a 52-week low of $609.40 and a 52-week high of $896.32. The stock has a market cap of $90.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.66, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a fifty day moving average of $725.69 and a 200 day moving average of $707.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is 28.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on KLAC. UBS Group lifted their price objective on KLA from $665.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on KLA from $759.00 to $864.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, KLA has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $831.68.

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.