Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) Stock Price Down 2.1%

Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) shares dropped 2.1% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $46.46 and last traded at $46.47. Approximately 33,510 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 93% from the average daily volume of 458,407 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.47.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, TheStreet cut Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Trading Down 1.8 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.75 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a 50-day moving average of $48.97 and a 200-day moving average of $49.32.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The semiconductor company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.04. Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a return on equity of 8.55% and a net margin of 7.03%. The firm had revenue of $171.19 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.00 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.37 EPS. Research analysts predict that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 1.69 EPS for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 25th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 22nd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.72%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s payout ratio is currently 88.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Robert Nestor Chylak sold 8,771 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.97, for a total value of $429,515.87. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 24,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,187,032.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kulicke and Soffa Industries

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 340.8% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 573 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 224.6% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 672 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 120.7% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 779 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 426 shares in the last quarter. 98.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.