KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) shares gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $645.00, but opened at $620.53. KLA shares last traded at $625.53, with a volume of 270,930 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on KLAC. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $925.00 price target on shares of KLA in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group lowered their price target on KLA from $900.00 to $765.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of KLA from $735.00 to $838.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised shares of KLA from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $750.00 to $850.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, KLA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $802.90.

KLA Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $721.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $762.59. The stock has a market cap of $82.19 billion, a PE ratio of 28.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.29.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.03 by $0.30. KLA had a net margin of 28.92% and a return on equity of 105.16%. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.74 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 30.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This is an increase from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 31.05%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KLA

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cynosure Group LLC bought a new stake in KLA in the first quarter valued at $316,000. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department boosted its stake in shares of KLA by 17.4% during the 1st quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 411 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. increased its position in shares of KLA by 1.0% during the first quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. now owns 7,090 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,953,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Texas Capital Bancshares Inc TX purchased a new position in shares of KLA during the first quarter valued at about $1,060,000. Finally, Cedar Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in KLA by 77.3% in the first quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 39 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

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.