Stifel Financial Corp Purchases 11,836 Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) by 32.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 48,328 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,836 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp owned about 0.09% of Kulicke and Soffa Industries worth $2,181,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 37.2% in the 2nd 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 during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 22.0% in the third quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,469,516 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $66,319,000 after purchasing 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% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,111,312 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $50,154,000 after purchasing an additional 187,673 shares during the last quarter. DDD Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the second quarter valued at approximately $8,163,000. Finally, Emerald Advisers LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 161,791 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kulicke and Soffa Industries

In other news, SVP Nelson Munpun Wong sold 30,000 shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.56, for a total value of $1,426,800.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 177,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,443,469.48. This trade represents a 14.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Robert Nestor Chylak sold 11,391 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.52, for a total value of $564,082.32. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 20,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,031,897.76. This represents a 35.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 221,121 shares of company stock worth $10,527,843. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLIC has been the topic of several research reports. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com downgraded Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on 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. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their price objective on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. One equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.40.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Trading Down 3.4 %

KLIC opened at $47.07 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -38.27 and a beta of 1.38. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.20 and a 12 month high of $56.71. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $47.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.63.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 13th. The semiconductor company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $181.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.51 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast 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 initiated 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 typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 19th will be issued a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. 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. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.