Sifting through countless of stocks in the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in KLA Corporation or Onto Innovation Inc. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc.

KLA Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets process control, process-enabling, and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related electronics industries worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Process Control; Specialty Semiconductor Process; and PCB and Component Inspection. It offers inspection and review tools to identify, locate, characterize, review, and analyze defects on various surfaces of patterned and unpatterned wafers; metrology systems to measure pattern dimensions, film thickness, film stress, layer-to-layer alignment, pattern placement, surface topography, and electro-optical properties for wafers; chemical process control equipment; wired and wireless sensor wafers and reticles; wafer defect inspection, review, and metrology systems; reticle inspection and metrology systems; wafer inspection and metrology systems; and semiconductor software solutions that provide run-time process control, defect excursion identification, process corrections, and defect classification to accelerate yield learning rates and reduce production risk. The company also provides etch, plasma dicing, deposition, and other wafer processing technologies and solutions for the semiconductor and microelectronics industry. In addition, it offers direct imaging, inspection, optical shaping, inkjet and additive printing, and computer-aided manufacturing and engineering solutions for the PCB market and inspection and metrology systems for quality control and yield improvement in advanced and traditional semiconductor packaging markets. The company was formerly known as KLA-Tencor Corporation and changed its name to KLA Corporation in July 2019. KLA Corporation was incorporated in 1975 and is headquartered in Milpitas, California.

Onto Innovation Inc. engages in the design, development, manufacture, and support of process control tools that perform macro-defect inspection and metrology in the United States, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, China, Southeast Asia, Asia, and Europe. The company offers lithography systems and process control analytical software; and automated and integrated metrology systems, silicon wafer all-surface inspection, macro defect inspection, automated defect classification and pattern analysis, yield analysis, opaque film metrology, 4D business, advanced packaging lithography, process control software, and yield management software products. It also provides process and yield management solutions, and device packaging and test facilities through standalone systems for optical metrology, macro-defect inspection, packaging lithography, and transparent and opaque thin film measurements. In addition, the company offers process control software portfolio that includes solutions for standalone tools, groups of tools, and factory-wide suites. Further, it engages in systems and software, spare parts, and other services, as well as offers software licensing services; and provides advanced product lines, such as FAaST, CnCV, and MBIR. The company’s products are used in semiconductor and advanced packaging device manufacturers; silicon wafers; semiconductor integrated circuit fabricators; light emitting diodes; vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers; micro-electromechanical systems; CMOS image sensors; silicon and compound semiconductor power devices; analog devices; RF filters; data storage; and various industrial and scientific applications. Onto Innovation Inc. was founded in 1940 and is headquartered in Wilmington, Massachusetts.

Latest Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment and KLA Corporation, Onto Innovation Inc. Stock News

As of May 6, 2026, KLA Corporation had a $237.3 billion market capitalization, compared to the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment median of $4.8 million. KLA Corporation’s stock is up 45.1% in 2026, up 0.7% in the previous five trading days and up 161.98% in the past year.

Currently, KLA Corporation’s price-earnings ratio is 51.4. KLA Corporation’s trailing 12-month revenue is $13.1 billion with a 35.7% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 11.5%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $37.073 per share for the current fiscal year. KLA Corporation currently has a 0.5% dividend yield.

As of May 6, 2026, Onto Innovation Inc. had a $14.6 billion market cap, putting it in the 82nd percentile of all stocks. Onto Innovation Inc.’s stock is up 73.7% in 2026, down 7.1% in the previous five trading days and up 136.39% in the past year.

Currently, Onto Innovation Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 136.8. Onto Innovation Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $1.0 billion with a 10.3% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 9.5%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $7.129 per share for the current fiscal year. Onto Innovation Inc. does not currently pay a dividend.

How We Compare KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc. Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
KLA Corporation	KLAC	F
Onto Innovation Inc.	ONTO	F

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

KLA Corporation has a Value Score of 8, which is Ultra Expensive. Onto Innovation Inc. has a Value Score of 5, which is Ultra Expensive.

The Value Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither KLA Corporation or Onto Innovation Inc. has a high enough value grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolio. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if KLA Corporation or Onto Innovation Inc. is the better investment when it comes to value.

KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc. Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
KLA Corporation	KLAC	A
Onto Innovation Inc.	ONTO	A

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

KLA Corporation has a Growth Score of 83, which is Very Strong. Onto Innovation Inc. has a Growth Score of 83, which is Very Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Growth Grade breakdown above, both KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc. have a grade of A. For investors who focus solely on a company’s upward growth, further research should be conducted into both companies’ other financial metrics before deciding whether to invest.

KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc.’s Momentum Grades

Company	Ticker	Momentum
KLA Corporation	KLAC	A
Onto Innovation Inc.	ONTO	A

Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

KLA Corporation has a Momentum Score of 89, which is Very Strong. Onto Innovation Inc. has a Momentum Score of 92, which is Very Strong.

The Momentum Grade Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Momentum Grade breakdown above, both KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc. have a grade of A. For those who focus solely on a company’s momentum, further research will need to be conducted into both companies to see if they fit your individual needs as an investor.

Other KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc. Grades

In addition to Value, Growth and Momentum, A+ Investor also provides grades for Estimate Revisions and Quality.

Earnings estimate revisions scores take into account the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, surprises beget further surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the ranking of key metrics. Specifically, the quality grade is the percentile rank of the composite of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and F-Score.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, KLA Corporation or Onto Innovation Inc. Stock?

Overall, KLA Corporation stock has a Value Score of 8, Growth Score of 83 and Momentum Score of 89.

Onto Innovation Inc. stock has a Value Score of 5, Growth Score of 83 and Momentum Score of 92.

Comparing KLA Corporation and Onto Innovation Inc.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.