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KLKLAC

KLA Corporation

$KLAC·$259B·Semiconductors·Technology
$175.54-4.5%YTD-84.5%1Y+96.4%
Mentions · last 7 days
2026-08-20: 19 posts2026-08-21: 11 posts2026-08-22: 6 posts2026-08-23: 11 posts147-16%
Price updated 2d ago·X counts updated 7d ago
KLKLAC
$KLACKLA Corporation
$175.54-4.48%147 posts-16%
AI analysisFundamentalsVoices on X
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AI verdict & sentimentAI analysisGenerated by AI from underlying data

Top X posts

Today's AI verdict on what's driving $KLAC, plus how loud the X conversation is and which way it's leaning.

AI analysis

TickerTalks’ read on the fundamentals and what’s driving the move.

Proven numbersCooling offAI verdict · as of 2026-08-30

Catching its breath after a run — could pick back up or fade from here.

KLA is the process-control monopoly in every fab — sitting on strong fundamentals into a heavy insider distribution and a hard pullback.

KLA Corporation is the near-monopoly in semiconductor process-control equipment — every advanced fab needs KLA's inspection tools to hit yield targets. It has the highest-margin business model in semi-cap-equipment, and it's in a hard pullback.

How the setup reads:

  • Operating story is strong: Q1 revenue grew 11.5% year-on-year to $3.4B, op margin 41% — best-in-class semi-cap-equipment, matches or beats AMAT and LRCX on quality.
  • Valuation is at the high end of the group: 54x earnings, 43x EV/EBITDA, 19x sales — paying for the process-control monopoly and 89% ROE; the multiple holds only if WFE spend keeps growing.
  • Insider distribution is loud: CEO Wallace sold $17.4M, Lorig $12.4M, others $13M+ combined — over $42M coordinated distribution into the current window is the loudest cautionary signal.
  • Bernstein raised PT to $250 from $225 (Outperform) as part of a broader WFE-estimate lift — analysts still constructive; insider distribution says otherwise.
  • Position is stretched-down: 14.5% below the 50-day on a -4.5% day, the 52w-range percentile is anomalous in the print but the trajectory is clearly down — the tape is repricing something specific.

The October 28 print is what breaks the cooling — a reiterated WFE guide with commentary on advanced-packaging inspection demand and specific memory-capex trajectory keeps the multiple; another beat-and-raise gets undone if Q3 guide underwhelms combined with the ongoing $40M+ insider distribution.

Agrees with X sentimentAgree with the mechanical case — Bernstein PT raise to $250, WFE-estimate lift across ASML/AMAT/KLAC/LRCX, semi-cap-cohort strength all check out; the honest add is the $42M+ coordinated insider distribution (Wallace $17.4M, Lorig $12.4M, others $13M+) is the counterweight the sample skips entirely.

What to watch: October 28 earnings — reiterated WFE guide with commentary on advanced-packaging inspection demand and memory-capex trajectory keeps the multiple; another guide-below-street combined with the ongoing $42M+ insider distribution unwinds the bounce.

On the calendar: 2026-10-28 — Q1 FY27 earnings

X sentiment

What the X crowd is saying right now — descriptive, summarised from the day’s posts.

Bullish sentiment6 posts analyzed · as of 2026-08-18

Chatter is bullish on KLA Corporation. Bernstein raised its price target to $250 from $225 (Outperform), part of a broader WFE-estimate lift across ASML, AMAT, KLAC, and LRCX. Fast Money Espresso's Rob Sechan named KLAC as his final-call buy. KLAC is described as showing relative strength alongside AMAT, ASML, and QCOM in the semi-cap cohort, with one voice noting ASML is quietly overtaking KLAC in YTD performance. An upcoming August 17 dividend for KLAC is flagged for stock-futures holders.

Read the AI verdict + X sentiment for $KLAC

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  • Next dated catalyst when there is one (earnings, deal closing, activist clock)
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What it does

Plain-English summary of the business — what they sell and how they make money.

Makes process control inspection and metrology equipment that semiconductor fabs use to monitor yield and detect defects.

Industry overviewAI analysisGenerated by AI from underlying data

Where Semiconductors sits in its cycle right now — and what that implies for $KLAC.

Semiconductors · Technology

No material change from last week — structural AI capex engine unchanged: hyperscaler Blackwell allocation stays tight through 2H26 and HBM3e pricing holds as LLM context-window expansion drives 5-8x per-server memory demand uplift.

What this means for $KLAC

Neutral — Makes process control inspection and metrology equipment that semiconductor fabs use to monitor yield and detect defects; limited read-through from semiconductors macro dynamics to this specific revenue mix.

Top industry ETF

$SMHVanEck Semiconductor ETF
+56.0%YTD
+85.1%1Y

Fundamentals & catalyst

Profitability, valuation, and the next earnings event — at a glance, with rule-of-thumb signals.

Key ratios

P/E
54.1How much investors are paying per dollar of profit the company actually earned in the last 12 months. Lower means the stock looks cheaper relative to earnings.~15–25 is typical for the S&P 500; high-growth names trade 30+; hyper-growth or speculative can be 100+ or negative.
ROIC
36.3%What percentage return the business earns on every dollar of capital (equity + debt) deployed in operations. The cleanest measure of business quality.Above ~15% is high-quality; consistently above 25% suggests a real moat. Below the company's cost of capital is value-destroying.
Op margin
42.1%Operating profit (after sales, marketing, R&D, and overhead but before interest and taxes) as a percentage of revenue. The clearest view of how well the underlying business is run.Mature business above 20% is healthy; software businesses can run 30%+; commodity / retail businesses operate in single digits.
FCF yield
1.6%Free cash flow (operating cash flow minus capex) divided by the company's market cap. The cash-on-cash return you'd get owning the whole business at today's price.Above ~5% is attractive; below ~2% means you're paying up for growth. Capital-light businesses (software) run higher than capital-heavy ones (utilities).
P/S
19.2Same idea as P/E but per dollar of revenue. Useful for companies that aren't profitable yet, where P/E is meaningless.Under ~2 is cheap; software / SaaS often runs 8–15; well above 20 implies the market is pricing in very high future growth.
ROE
89.1%Net income as a percentage of shareholders' equity. Similar to ROIC but counts only the equity side.Above 20% is strong, but can be inflated by leverage — a heavily indebted company can show high ROE with weak underlying ROIC.
Gross margin
61.8%Revenue minus the direct cost of producing what was sold, as a percentage of revenue. The first read on whether the product is structurally profitable.Software / SaaS is typically 70%+; consumer goods 30–50%; commodity / hardware businesses can be under 20%.
D/E
1.1Total debt divided by shareholders' equity. Measures how much the business runs on borrowed money versus owner capital.Under 1 is conservative; 1–2 is typical for mature businesses; over 2 is leveraged and more sensitive to interest rates.

Past earnings

QuarterReportedActualEstimateSurprise
Q2 2026Jul 28, 2026$1.05$1.00+5.0%
Q1 2026Apr 29, 2026$0.94$0.92+2.5%
Q4 2025Jan 29, 2026$0.89$0.88+1.1%
Q3 2025Oct 29, 2025$0.88$0.86+2.3%
Next earningsWed, Oct 28·consensus EPS $1.17

Quarterly trend

QuarterRevenueYoYGrossOpEPSFCF
Q3 FY26$3.4B+11.5%61.1%41.2%$9.17$622.3M
Q2 FY26$3.3B+7.2%61.4%41.3%$8.73$1.3B
Q1 FY26$3.2B+13.0%61.3%41.7%$8.51$1.1B
Q4 FY25$3.2B+23.7%63.2%44.2%$9.11$1.1B

Forward consensus

6-year forecast · up to 20 analysts
FYRevenueRangeEPSRangeAnalysts
FY26$13.5B$13.5B – $13.6B$3.71$3.69 – $3.7520
FY27$18.0B$16.6B – $18.9B$5.48$4.94 – $5.8817
FY28$21.3B$20.4B – $22.3B$6.62$6.12 – $7.4015
FY29$23.6B$21.8B – $26.2B$7.50$6.60 – $8.439
FY30$27.8B$24.9B – $30.0B$8.60$7.46 – $9.515
FY31$31.8B$28.5B – $34.4B$10.15$8.80 – $11.235

Setup & momentum

Volume, range, and moving-average position — the technical setup driving short-term moves.

Right now

Vol vs 30dToday's traded share volume divided by the average over the prior 30 trading days. ≥3× signals unusual interest; below 1× is quiet.0.6×Today's traded share volume divided by the average over the prior 30 trading days. ≥3× signals unusual interest; below 1× is quiet.
52w rangeWhere the latest close sits between the 52-week low (0%) and high (100%). Above 80% is extended; below 30% is basing or in a downtrend.1%Where the latest close sits between the 52-week low (0%) and high (100%). Above 80% is extended; below 30% is basing or in a downtrend.
vs 50d MALatest close vs the 50-day simple moving average. Positive = short-term trend is up.-14.5%Latest close vs the 50-day simple moving average. Positive = short-term trend is up.
vs 200d MALatest close vs the 200-day simple moving average. Positive = long-term trend is up.-83.9%Latest close vs the 200-day simple moving average. Positive = long-term trend is up.

Float & profile

FloatMega float · 1.3B shFree-float shares — the slice of issued stock actually available to trade. Lower buckets squeeze harder on a catalyst.Traded today0.5% of floatToday's volume as a percent of the free float. Above 5% on a single day is unusually high turnover for the available share count.β1.465-year weekly beta vs the S&P 500. Above 1.5 means the stock typically moves more than the index; below 0.8 moves less.

Insider activity

Recent open-market buys and sells by officers and directors — flagged when multiple insiders cluster.

Recent transactions

SellAug 13Brian LorigEVP, KLA Global Services59.6K sh$12.4MSellAug 12Bren D. HigginsCFO31.5K sh$6.6MSellAug 11Richard P WallaceCEO87.6K sh$17.4MSellAug 11Ahmad A. KhanPresident33.2K sh$6.6MSellAug 10Virendra A KirloskarSVP & Chief Accounting Officer529 sh$108KSellAug 10Wilkinson Mary BethEVP, CLO and Secretary1.7K sh$340KSellAug 7Virendra A KirloskarSVP & Chief Accounting Officer2.4K sh$475KSellAug 7Wilkinson Mary BethEVP, CLO and Secretary21.8K sh$4.3MSellAug 5Wilkinson Mary BethEVP, CLO and Secretary13.8K sh$2.7MSellAug 5Virendra A KirloskarSVP & Chief Accounting Officer4.5K sh$881K
1–10 of 19
+ 51 other (35 inkinds · 11 awards · 5 others) in window

See when $KLAC insiders are putting their own money in

  • Real-time open-market buys and sells from Form 4 filings
  • Cluster-buy detection when multiple insiders pile in at once
  • 30 / 60 / 180-day windows so you can spot building conviction
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SEC filings

Material 8-K, 13D, S-3, and 424B5 events from the last 180 days — the filings that actually move the price.

Recent material filings

8-KCharter amendmentJun 128-K — Item 5.03: Charter amendment
AI summary

KLA Corporation effected a 10-for-1 forward stock split via a Delaware Charter Amendment that became effective at 11:59 PM ET on June 11, 2026, announced May 7, 2026; authorized shares proportionately increased from 500,000,000 to 5,000,000,000. This is a materially positive signal for retail accessibility — KLA's 10-for-1 split at its scale broadens the shareholder base and increases trading liquidity without changing underlying fundamentals.

8-KPress release / Reg FDMar 128-K — Item 7.01: Press release / Reg FD · Item 8.01: Other event
+ 9 other (2 routine 8-Ks · 2 earnings 8-Ks · 2 13Gs · 1 10-K) in window

Recent news

Latest headlines from major outlets, sourced and timestamped — context for whatever just moved.

KLAC vs. SNDK: Which Semiconductor Stock is a Better Buy Now?zacks.com·3d agoKLA (KLAC) Up 8% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Continue?zacks.com·3d agoWall Street Analysts Think KLA (KLAC) Could Surge 29.36%: Read This Before Placing a Betzacks.com·3d agoKLA: The AI Yield Bottleneck Is Becoming More Valuableseekingalpha.com·4d agoKLA Gains From Advanced Packaging: Can it Outpace ONTO & AMAT?zacks.com·4d ago

In themes

Explore the broader themes this ticker is being talked about under.

AI InfrastructureSemiconductor Onshoring

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Voices on X · top 4 · last 7 days

TickerTalks is a research tool, not financial advice. We surface social-attention data; we do not make stock recommendations. Past attention is not predictive of future price movements.

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