Katamaran Capital LLP Takes $1.44 Million Position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

Katamaran Capital LLP purchased a new position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 30,860 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,440,000. Kulicke and Soffa Industries makes up approximately 1.8% of Katamaran Capital LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Katamaran Capital LLP owned approximately 0.06% of Kulicke and Soffa Industries at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KLIC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,875,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 50.6% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 431,945 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $20,155,000 after acquiring an additional 145,066 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,492,000. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 530,827 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $24,768,000 after purchasing an additional 74,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,916,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on KLIC shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kulicke and Soffa Industries has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $52.00.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Price Performance

KLIC stock opened at $29.12 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 242.67 and a beta of 1.38. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $26.63 and a 1-year high of $53.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $38.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The semiconductor company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.01). Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a negative return on equity of 1.26% and a net margin of 0.48%. As a group, analysts expect that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 0.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Kulicke and Soffa Industries’s payout ratio is 683.33%.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries 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.