Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) Sets New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) shares reached a new 52-week low during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $34.84 and last traded at $35.36, with a volume of 107256 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.89.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KLIC has been the subject of a number of research reports. 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 reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.00.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 298.00 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a 50-day moving average of $41.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.16.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The semiconductor company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 0.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a $0.205 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 683.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 19,735 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $891,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,985 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 35.5% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,061 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 50,007 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,333,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the period. Finally, Personal CFO Solutions LLC raised its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 5,576 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $260,000 after buying an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. 98.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Kulicke and Soffa Industries

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.