Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) Upgraded to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Thursday.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price target on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.40.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Performance

Shares of KLIC stock opened at $47.54 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $48.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.76. Kulicke and Soffa Industries has a 52-week low of $38.20 and a 52-week high of $56.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.56 billion, a P/E ratio of -38.65 and a beta of 1.37.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 13th. The semiconductor company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $181.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $180.03 million. Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a negative net margin of 9.77% and a negative return on equity of 0.92%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.51 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Kulicke and Soffa Industries will post 1.29 EPS for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, November 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to buy up to 11.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 19th were issued a $0.205 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 19th. This is an increase from Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -66.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kulicke and Soffa Industries

In other Kulicke and Soffa Industries news, SVP Robert Nestor Chylak sold 11,391 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.52, for a total value of $564,082.32. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,838 shares in the company, valued at $1,031,897.76. This trade represents a 35.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Chan Pin Chong sold 9,730 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.07, for a total value of $448,261.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 81,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,773,870.12. The trade was a 10.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 221,121 shares of company stock worth $10,527,843 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kulicke and Soffa Industries

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 137.5% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 715 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 226.3% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 783 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 61.0% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 387 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 3rd quarter worth $53,000. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 101.8% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,923 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 970 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

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 four segments: Ball Bonding Equipment, Wedge Bonding Equipment, Advanced Solutions, and Aftermarket Products and Services (APS). The company offers ball bonding equipment, wafer level bonding equipment, wedge bonding equipment; and advanced display, die-attach, and thermocompression systems and solutions, as well as tools, spares and services for equipment.