Intech Investment Management LLC Purchases Shares of 13,477 Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 13,477 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $608,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of KLIC. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 37.2% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,075,790 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $52,918,000 after acquiring an additional 291,787 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 22.0% during the third quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,469,516 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $66,319,000 after buying an additional 264,638 shares during the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP increased its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 20.3% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,111,312 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $50,154,000 after acquiring an additional 187,673 shares in the last quarter. DDD Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 2nd quarter worth about $8,163,000. Finally, Emerald Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 57.5% in the 2nd quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 443,002 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $21,791,000 after acquiring an additional 161,791 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kulicke and Soffa Industries

In related news, EVP Chan Pin Chong sold 9,730 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.07, for a total transaction of $448,261.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 81,916 shares in the company, valued at $3,773,870.12. This trade represents a 10.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Nelson Munpun Wong sold 30,000 shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.56, for a total transaction of $1,426,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 177,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,443,469.48. The trade was a 14.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 99,730 shares of company stock worth $4,657,261 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on KLIC. Needham & Company LLC raised Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Craig Hallum reduced their target price on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com lowered Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kulicke and Soffa Industries has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.40.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Performance

Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries stock opened at $48.42 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.39. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.20 and a 52-week high of $56.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.37 and a beta of 1.38.

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

Kulicke and Soffa Industries declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, November 13th that allows the company to buyback $300.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to buy up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 19th will be given a $0.205 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 19th. This is a positive change from Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s payout ratio is -66.67%.

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.