Olstein Capital Management L.P. Sells 57,405 Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Olstein Capital Management L.P. lowered its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC - Free Report) by 23.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 189,000 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 57,405 shares during the period. Kulicke and Soffa Industries accounts for 1.6% of Olstein Capital Management L.P.'s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Olstein Capital Management L.P. owned 0.35% of Kulicke and Soffa Industries worth $8,819,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Barclays PLC boosted 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 valued at $4,361,000 after acquiring an additional 44,429 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 37.4% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 150,533 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $6,794,000 after purchasing an additional 40,990 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 27.8% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 88,712 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $3,977,000 after buying an additional 19,279 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 32.4% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 48,328 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $2,181,000 after acquiring an additional 11,836 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning increased its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 127.2% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 25,864 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 14,480 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.22% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kulicke and Soffa Industries

In other Kulicke and Soffa Industries news, Director Chin Hu Lim sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,872,215.11. The trade was a 33.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Robert Nestor Chylak sold 11,391 shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.52, for a total value of $564,082.32. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 20,838 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,031,897.76. This trade represents a 35.34 % 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 valued at $10,527,843. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KLIC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen boosted their target price 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 shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of 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. Finally, 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 research report on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $52.40.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ KLIC traded down $0.67 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $45.15. 376,558 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 318,855. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $47.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.43 billion, a P/E ratio of -36.71 and a beta of 1.37. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.20 and a twelve month high of $56.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 13th. The semiconductor company reported $0.34 EPS 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 company had revenue of $181.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $180.03 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. Kulicke and Soffa Industries's revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 1.29 EPS for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, November 13th that allows the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to buy up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

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

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.