2Xideas AG Has $10.23 Million Stock Holdings in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

2Xideas AG increased its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 74.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,238 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 6,932 shares during the period. 2Xideas AG’s holdings in KLA were worth $10,232,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in KLA during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of KLA by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of KLA during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in KLA during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD raised its position in shares of KLA by 160.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Price Performance

NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $576.53 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $76.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.37. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $716.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $699.79. KLA Co. has a one year low of $559.76 and a one year high of $896.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts expect that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on KLAC. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna boosted their target price on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on KLA from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $832.17.

Insider Activity

In other KLA news, CFO Bren D. Higgins sold 7,008 shares of KLA 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 28,798 shares in the company, valued at $20,867,606.76. The trade was a 19.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About KLA

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.