Royce & Associates LP Buys 54,116 Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) by 4.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,165,428 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 54,116 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries were worth $54,379,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Copeland Capital Management LLC raised its position 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 valued at $70,113,000 after purchasing an additional 33,124 shares during the period. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in 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 worth $24,768,000 after acquiring an additional 74,920 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its holdings in 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 worth $17,972,000 after acquiring an additional 38,655 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 262,799 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $12,262,000 after acquiring an additional 4,613 shares during the period. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP grew its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 20.6% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Performance

Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries stock opened at $36.74 on Friday. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $35.04 and a 52-week high of $53.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 306.17 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a fifty day moving average of $42.26 and a 200-day moving average of $44.39.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The semiconductor company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.01). Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a net margin of 0.48% and a negative return on equity of 1.26%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.205 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 683.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KLIC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $53.00 price target on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.00.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries 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.