TimesSquare Capital Management LLC Acquires 74,920 Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC)

TimesSquare Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) by 16.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 530,827 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 74,920 shares during the quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC owned 0.99% of Kulicke and Soffa Industries worth $24,768,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake 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. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 36,329 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,695,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 61.0% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 10,951 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $511,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 137.5% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 715 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the period. 98.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Performance

KLIC stock opened at $43.44 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $45.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.87. The company has a market capitalization of $2.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 362.00 and a beta of 1.36. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.20 and a 52-week high of $53.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) last posted 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, sell-side analysts forecast that Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, November 13th that permits the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor company to purchase up to 11.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Fusen Ernie Chen sold 80,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.29, for a total transaction of $3,863,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,100,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,155,941.85. This trade represents a 6.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Robert Nestor Chylak sold 11,391 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.52, for a total transaction of $564,082.32. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,838 shares in the company, valued at $1,031,897.76. The trade was a 35.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 121,391 shares of company stock worth $5,870,582. 3.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on KLIC shares. TD Cowen lifted 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 report on Friday, November 15th. DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of 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. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $53.00 price objective on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.00.

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.