Brokerages Set Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) Target Price at $52.00

Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $52.00.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 price objective on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kulicke and Soffa Industries

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,776 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 527 shares during the period. Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. acquired a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries during the fourth quarter worth $404,000. Menard Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries during the fourth quarter valued at $54,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 212.5% during the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 27,798 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,297,000 after acquiring an additional 18,904 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowpoint Investment Partners Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 4th quarter valued at $443,000. 98.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Trading Up 1.6 %

KLIC opened at $33.50 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $39.47 and a 200-day moving average of $43.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 279.17 and a beta of 1.38. Kulicke and Soffa Industries has a 1-year low of $31.77 and a 1-year high of $53.71.

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 for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.01). Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a net margin of 0.48% and a negative return on equity of 1.26%. Equities analysts predict that Kulicke and Soffa Industries will post 0.93 EPS for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 683.33%.

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.