Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Grows Stock Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 40.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,450 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 415 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $914,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in KLA by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in KLA by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 253 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $160,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. boosted its holdings in KLA by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 246 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $155,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the period. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in KLA by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 755 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $476,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the period. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its holdings in KLA by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 582 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $451,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $711.29 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $94.52 billion, a PE ratio of 29.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $722.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $710.85. KLA Co. has a one year low of $609.40 and a one year high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.36.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued 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 net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 108.60%. As a group, equities analysts predict that KLA Co. will post 31.59 EPS for the current year.

KLA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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 is presently 28.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KLAC has been the subject of several research reports. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.