Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) Shares Gap Up Following Dividend Announcement

Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced a dividend. The stock had previously closed at $47.05, but opened at $48.98. Kulicke and Soffa Industries shares last traded at $48.34, with a volume of 169,653 shares.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th will be given a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.80%. This is a boost from Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s payout ratio is currently -76.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on KLIC. Craig Hallum decreased their target price on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. StockNews.com cut Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.33.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Down 3.1 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $44.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -45.67 and a beta of 1.38.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, November 13th that permits the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 11.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Kulicke and Soffa Industries

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 10.8% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 4.2% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 36,259 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,636,000 after acquiring an additional 1,462 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 1.3% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 19,735 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $891,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 36.6% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 39,005 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,760,000 after acquiring an additional 10,450 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 308.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 13,369 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $603,000 after acquiring an additional 10,097 shares during the period. 98.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.