Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) Upgraded at Needham & Company LLC

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) was upgraded by analysts at Needham & Company LLC from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $55.00 target price on the semiconductor company’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s price target points to a potential upside of 19.07% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on KLIC. Craig Hallum dropped their price objective on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Kulicke and Soffa Industries has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $52.40.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Trading Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ KLIC opened at $46.19 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $44.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $45.36. Kulicke and Soffa Industries has a twelve month low of $38.20 and a twelve month high of $56.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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). Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a negative net margin of 9.77% and a negative return on equity of 0.92%. The business had revenue of $181.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $180.03 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.51 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Kulicke and Soffa Industries will post 1.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, November 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $300.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to buy up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KLIC. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 1.3% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 19,735 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $891,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 3.4% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 11,384 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $560,000 after buying an additional 372 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 137.5% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 715 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 6,054 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $273,000 after buying an additional 519 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 226.3% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 783 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. 98.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.