Marvin & Palmer Associates Inc. Makes New $1.17 Million Investment in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Marvin & Palmer Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 19,750 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,174,000. Kulicke and Soffa Industries comprises about 0.5% of Marvin & Palmer Associates Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of KLIC. Byrne Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the second quarter worth $36,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 381.4% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,136 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Middle East FZE bought a new stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the fourth quarter valued at $65,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 37.7% in the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,259 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the first quarter valued at $75,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.49% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on KLIC shares. B. Riley boosted their target price on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com started coverage on Kulicke and Soffa Industries in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Craig Hallum upgraded Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLIC traded down $1.20 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $49.84. 107,526 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 484,026. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $40.20 and a 12 month high of $60.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.21 and a beta of 1.41. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $46.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.26.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 16th. The semiconductor company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.08. Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a return on equity of 8.92% and a net margin of 7.70%. The company had revenue of $202.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $200.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.19 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 29.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 2.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. This is a positive change from Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 20th. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s payout ratio is presently 76.77%.

Insider Activity at Kulicke and Soffa Industries

In related news, CEO Fusen Ernie Chen sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.11, for a total transaction of $1,413,300.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,094,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,556,241.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Kulicke and Soffa Industries news, SVP Robert Nestor Chylak sold 4,084 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.88, for a total value of $199,625.92. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,609 shares in the company, valued at approximately $958,487.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Fusen Ernie Chen sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.11, for a total value of $1,413,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,094,380 shares in the company, valued at $51,556,241.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Company Profile

Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells capital equipment and tools used to assemble semiconductor devices. It operates through two segments, Capital Equipment, and Aftermarket Products and Services (APS). The company manufactures and sells advanced displays; die-transfer, flip-chip, and TCB advanced packaging products; ball bonder, die-attach, electronics assembly, lithography, wafer-level bonder, and wedge bonder products; consumables, such as capillaries, dicing blades, and wedge bonds; and auto offline programming, KNet PLUS, and new product introduction/manufacturing execution system software products.