On October 1, KLA Corporation rose 3.08% overnight, trading at $201.15 per share, with turnover of $1.8656 million. The semiconductor equipment sector showed broad strength, with AXT Inc up 3.71%, Applied Materials up 3.39%, Lam Research up 3.34%, Teradyne up 3.02%, and ASML Holding up 1.63%.
On the news front, multiple industry analyses highlighted KLA's record backlog of $12.57 billion at fiscal year-end, surging 60% year over year, with a book-to-bill ratio of 1.4x and delivery lead times stretching to 18-24 months. The backlog growth was primarily driven by accelerating AI infrastructure investment, with advanced packaging process control revenue expected to climb over 70% year over year. Fiscal 2026 annual revenue rose 12% to $13.58 billion, and management guided first-quarter fiscal 2027 revenue to approximately $4 billion, signaling continued acceleration.
Additionally, KLA announced a $7 billion increase to its share repurchase authorization and a 21% quarterly dividend hike, reinforcing capital return commitments. Wall Street consensus remains constructive, with a buy-leaning rating and an average price target of $239.62, well above current trading levels.
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