CIBC Asset Management Inc Makes New $253,000 Investment in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 5,413 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $253,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLIC. Royce & Associates LP lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 20.3% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,111,312 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $50,154,000 after purchasing an additional 187,673 shares during the last quarter. Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at $4,062,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 105.6% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 146,079 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $6,593,000 after purchasing an additional 75,043 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 59.7% in the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 140,269 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $6,330,000 after purchasing an additional 52,419 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Olstein Capital Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 22.6% in the 3rd quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 246,405 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $11,120,000 after purchasing an additional 45,405 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Trading Down 1.8 %

KLIC opened at $39.77 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $45.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.92. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.20 and a 12-month high of $53.71. The firm has a market cap of $2.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 331.42 and a beta of 1.36.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The semiconductor company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.01). Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a negative return on equity of 1.26% and a net margin of 0.48%. On average, research analysts forecast that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kulicke and Soffa Industries news, CEO Fusen Ernie Chen sold 80,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.29, for a total transaction of $3,863,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,100,765 shares in the company, valued at $53,155,941.85. This represents a 6.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Chin Hu Lim sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.11, for a total value of $1,443,300.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 59,701 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,872,215.11. This trade represents a 33.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 121,391 shares of company stock worth $5,870,582 in the last quarter. 3.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on KLIC shares. DA Davidson decreased 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. StockNews.com raised Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $53.00 price target on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Three equities research 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 stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.00.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries 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.