KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) Short Interest Update

by · The Markets Daily

KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC – Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 3,350,000 shares, an increase of 17.1% from the February 13th total of 2,860,000 shares. Currently, 2.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,120,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on KLA from $703.00 to $748.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded KLA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted 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. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price objective on KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $830.67.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on KLA

KLA Stock Up 1.4 %

KLAC stock traded up $9.61 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $719.61. 753,320 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 948,310. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $727.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $704.39. The company has a market capitalization of $95.63 billion, a PE ratio of 30.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30. KLA has a twelve month low of $609.40 and a twelve month high of $896.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 earnings per share 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that KLA will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. KLA’s payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

Institutional Trading of KLA

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 246 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $155,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 755 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $476,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 140 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. 86.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KLA Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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