KLA(US:KLAC) ZACKSยท2024-07-25 15:07Core Insights - KLA Corporation reported strong fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 results with non-GAAP earnings of $6.60 per share, exceeding estimates by 8.55% and showing a year-over-year increase of 25.5% [1] - Revenues for the quarter reached $2.57 billion, a 9.1% increase year over year, also surpassing estimates by 2.57% [1] - The company expects first-quarter fiscal 2025 revenues to be around $2.75 billion, indicating a year-over-year growth of 1.99% [5] Revenue Breakdown - Semiconductor Process Control revenues accounted for 89.8% of total revenues, increasing 10% year over year to $2.31 billion [10] - Within Semiconductor Process Control, Foundry & Logic contributed approximately 82% while Memory made up about 18%, with DRAM representing 82% of memory revenues [2] - Wafer Inspection revenues rose 23% year over year to $1.17 billion, while Patterning revenues saw a decline of 7% year over year but increased 1% sequentially to $542 million [3] Expense and Margin Analysis - Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses increased 1.7% year over year to $255.1 million, but as a percentage of sales, they decreased to 9.9% [4] - Non-GAAP gross margin for the quarter was reported at 62.5%, slightly above the guidance range [14] - Non-GAAP operating expenses totaled $552.5 million, with R&D expenses at $325.8 million, reflecting a year-over-year increase of 2.7% [15][22] Cash Flow and Shareholder Returns - Cash flow from operating activities was $892.6 million, down from $910 million in the prior quarter, while free cash flow was $831.9 million [27] - The company returned value to shareholders by paying out $197.5 million in dividends and repurchasing $470.3 million worth of shares during the quarter [25] Balance Sheet Highlights - Long-term debt decreased to $5.88 billion from $6.7 billion in the previous quarter [16] - As of June 30, 2024, cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities totaled $4.5 billion, up from $4.3 billion as of March 31, 2024 [24] Market Performance - KLA shares have outperformed the Zacks Computer & Technology sector year to date, gaining 30% compared to the sector's 23.8% return [29]