Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Acquires 1,155 Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) by 15.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,582 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 1,155 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries were worth $400,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Copeland Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,502,640 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $70,113,000 after acquiring an additional 33,124 shares during the period. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 530,827 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $24,768,000 after purchasing an additional 74,920 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 398,225 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $17,972,000 after purchasing an additional 38,655 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 262,799 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $12,262,000 after purchasing an additional 4,613 shares during the period. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 20.6% in the fourth quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 212,834 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $9,931,000 after buying an additional 36,290 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Performance

Shares of KLIC stock opened at $36.51 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a PE ratio of 304.25 and a beta of 1.38. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $34.84 and a 52-week high of $53.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last released 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, sell-side analysts forecast that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 0.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 683.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 price target on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.00.

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.