Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 17,380 Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) by 6.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 258,186 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 17,380 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries were worth $11,652,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 137.5% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 715 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 226.3% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 783 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the third quarter worth about $53,000. CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 101.8% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,923 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 970 shares in the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 1,900.0% during the second quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $98,000 after buying an additional 1,900 shares during the last quarter. 98.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Price Performance

Shares of KLIC opened at $47.76 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a P/E ratio of -38.83 and a beta of 1.38. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $38.20 and a one year high of $56.71. The business has a fifty day moving average of $47.54 and a 200 day moving average of $45.73.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 13th. The semiconductor company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $181.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $180.03 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.51 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 1.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.205 per share. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date is 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 (DPR) is currently -66.67%.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback 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 often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen upped their price objective on 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. StockNews.com downgraded Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Needham & Company LLC upgraded Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kulicke and Soffa Industries currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.40.

Insider Activity

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 $1,031,897.76. This represents a 35.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 approximately $3,773,870.12. This trade represents a 10.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 221,121 shares of company stock valued at $10,527,843 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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.