Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 17,380 Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 258,186 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 17,380 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.48% of Kulicke and Soffa Industries worth $11,652,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 137.5% in 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 in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 226.3% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 783 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at about $53,000. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 101.8% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,923 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 970 shares during the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 1,900.0% during the second quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Price Performance

Shares of KLIC stock opened at $47.76 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $47.54 and a 200 day moving average of $45.73. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.20 and a 1-year high of $56.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a PE ratio of -38.83 and a beta of 1.38.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 13th. The semiconductor company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $181.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $180.03 million. Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a negative net margin of 9.77% and a negative return on equity of 0.92%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.51 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 1.29 EPS for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 19th will be given a dividend of $0.205 per share. 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.72%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently -66.67%.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, November 13th that permits the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price target 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 Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Needham & Company LLC upgraded Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price objective on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Fusen Ernie Chen sold 80,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.29, for a total value of $3,863,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,100,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,155,941.85. This trade represents a 6.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Lester A. Wong sold 60,000 shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.37, for a total transaction of $2,782,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 79,636 shares in the company, valued at $3,692,721.32. The trade was a 42.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 221,121 shares of company stock worth $10,527,843. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.