KLA stock drops after tech pullback hits chip equipment names; Fed minutes next

KLA stock drops after tech pullback hits chip equipment names; Fed minutes next

NEW YORK, December 29, 2025, 21:14 ET — Market closed

  • KLA Corp shares closed down 1.5% as U.S. tech stocks retreated in thin year-end trading. MarketWatch
  • The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell 0.41%, weighing on chip-related names. MarketWatch
  • Investors are watching Fed minutes and weekly jobless claims before the next session. Reuters

KLA Corp shares fell on Monday, snapping a six-session winning streak, as a pullback in heavyweight technology stocks spilled into chip-linked names. MarketWatch

The move matters now because chip equipment makers like KLA sit early in the semiconductor supply chain, and their shares often track shifts in investor appetite for the tech trade. Year-end positioning can exaggerate those swings when liquidity is thin. Reuters

Wall Street started the holiday-shortened week on a softer note after last week’s rally, with the Nasdaq down 0.5% and the S&P 500 off 0.35%, Reuters reported. Reuters

KLA (KLAC.O) ended down 1.5% at $1,260.39, according to market data. The stock traded between $1,256.52 and $1,286 during the session.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (.SOX) fell 0.41%. Among related names, Applied Materials rose 0.44% while Lam Research slipped 1.24%, leaving KLA on the weaker side of the group. MarketWatch

KLA’s trading was quieter than usual, with about 625,000 shares changing hands versus a 50-day average near 993,000, MarketWatch data showed. MarketWatch

This isn’t the beginning of the end of the tech dominance,” said Hank Smith, director and head of investment strategy at Haverford Trust, framing Monday’s decline as the kind of pullback buyers have been willing to use in recent months. Reuters

KLA sells process-control tools used in semiconductor manufacturing, including inspection systems and metrology equipment — precise measurement systems that help chipmakers detect defects and manage “yield,” or how many usable chips come off a wafer. KLA Corporation

That places KLA among the stocks traders watch when markets debate whether spending tied to advanced chips and data centers is accelerating or cooling. Moves in AI-linked megacaps such as Nvidia have recently set the tone for the broader tech complex, Reuters reported. Reuters

Before the next session, attention turns to whether chip names stabilize as investors head into the final stretch of the year with light volumes. Reuters said minutes from the Federal Reserve’s last policy meeting and weekly jobless-claims data are among the few scheduled U.S. releases this week. Reuters

KLA’s investor relations calendar currently lists no upcoming events. Third-party earnings calendars from Nasdaq and Zacks point to Jan. 29 for KLA’s next quarterly report, though those dates are estimates and not a company announcement. KLA Corporation

On the chart, Monday’s $1,256 area low is the nearest support; a break would put the $1,250 round number in focus for short-term traders. Resistance sits near $1,286, roughly the day’s high.

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