Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Makes New Investment in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,178 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KLIC. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 27.8% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 88,712 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,977,000 after acquiring an additional 19,279 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 32.4% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 48,328 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,181,000 after purchasing an additional 11,836 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 59.7% in the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 140,269 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $6,330,000 after purchasing an additional 52,419 shares during the period. Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries during the third quarter worth $4,062,000. Finally, Paloma Partners Management Co purchased a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at $273,000. 98.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on KLIC. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price target 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 assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kulicke and Soffa Industries currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Chin Hu Lim sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.11, for a total transaction of $1,443,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 59,701 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,872,215.11. This represents a 33.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Chan Pin Chong sold 9,730 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 81,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,773,870.12. The trade was a 10.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 221,121 shares of company stock valued at $10,527,843. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Performance

Shares of KLIC stock opened at $46.95 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $47.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.65. The stock has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a PE ratio of -38.17 and a beta of 1.38. 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 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). Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a negative return on equity of 0.92% and a negative net margin of 9.77%. The business had revenue of $181.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $180.03 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.51 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.205 per share. This is a positive change from Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 19th. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently -66.67%.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, November 13th that allows the company to repurchase $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows 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 board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.