Olstein Capital Management L.P. Has $8.82 Million Stock Holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Olstein Capital Management L.P. lowered its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) by 23.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 189,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 57,405 shares during the quarter. Kulicke and Soffa Industries comprises 1.6% of Olstein Capital Management L.P.’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Olstein Capital Management L.P.’s holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries were worth $8,819,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Artemis Investment Management LLP grew its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 20.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 36,329 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,695,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 61.0% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 85.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 96,604 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,361,000 after purchasing an additional 44,429 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the third quarter worth $53,000. Institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Trading Down 1.5 %

KLIC opened at $45.15 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.43 billion, a P/E ratio of -36.71 and a beta of 1.37. The company’s 50 day moving average is $47.79 and its 200-day moving average is $45.62. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.20 and a 1-year high of $56.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last issued its earnings results 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). Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a negative net margin of 9.77% and a negative return on equity of 0.92%. The company had revenue of $181.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $180.03 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 1.29 EPS for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 19th were issued a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 19th. This is a boost from Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently -66.67%.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, November 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $300.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to purchase up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen upped 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 report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com cut shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their target price on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One research 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $52.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kulicke and Soffa Industries

In other Kulicke and Soffa Industries news, SVP Robert Nestor Chylak sold 11,391 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.52, for a total value of $564,082.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,031,897.76. This represents a 35.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Chan Pin Chong sold 9,730 shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.07, for a total transaction of $448,261.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 81,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,773,870.12. This trade represents a 10.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 221,121 shares of company stock worth $10,527,843. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.