Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Sells 27,582 Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. trimmed its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) by 4.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 637,355 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 27,582 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 1.17% of Kulicke and Soffa Industries worth $28,764,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creative Planning increased its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 3.4% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 11,384 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $560,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 137.5% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 715 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management grew its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 9.4% during the third quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 6,054 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $273,000 after buying an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake 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 worth $35,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Donald L. Hagan LLC grew its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 10.6% during the second quarter. Donald L. Hagan LLC now owns 6,525 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $321,000 after buying an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. 98.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Kulicke and Soffa Industries

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KLIC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com cut shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of 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. Finally, Craig Hallum decreased their target price on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.40.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries stock opened at $49.47 on Thursday. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.20 and a twelve month high of $56.71. The stock has a market cap of $2.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -40.22 and a beta of 1.38. The company’s fifty day moving average is $46.26 and its 200 day moving average is $45.43.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 13th. The semiconductor company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $181.30 million during 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 for the quarter was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.51 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock 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 reacquire up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 7th will be issued a $0.205 dividend. This is a positive change from Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 19th. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s payout ratio is presently -65.04%.

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.