Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) CEO Sells $3,863,200.00 in Stock

Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) CEO Fusen Ernie Chen sold 80,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,100,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,155,941.85. This trade represents a 6.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Performance

NASDAQ:KLIC traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $48.23. The stock had a trading volume of 359,079 shares, compared to its average volume of 503,579. The stock has a market cap of $2.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.21 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.46. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.20 and a 12-month high of $56.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last announced 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 firm 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%. The company’s revenue was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect 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 has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, November 13th that allows the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to purchase up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 19th. This is an increase from Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -65.04%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kulicke and Soffa Industries

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of KLIC. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 37.2% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,075,790 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $52,918,000 after acquiring an additional 291,787 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC raised 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 buying an additional 264,638 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP boosted its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 20.3% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,111,312 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $50,154,000 after buying an additional 187,673 shares during the period. DDD Partners LLC bought a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 2nd quarter worth about $8,163,000. Finally, Emerald Advisers LLC boosted its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 57.5% during the 2nd quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 443,002 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $21,791,000 after acquiring an additional 161,791 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on KLIC shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. 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 report on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. DA Davidson dropped their price target 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. Finally, Craig Hallum reduced their price objective on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.40.

About Kulicke and Soffa Industries

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.