Nomura Holdings Inc. Takes Position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. $KLIC

Key Points

• Nomura Holdings Inc. has acquired approximately $647,000 worth of shares in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, purchasing 19,632 shares during the first quarter of the year.
• Several institutional investors have also increased their stakes in Kulicke and Soffa, with Baird Financial Group raising its holdings by 33.7% to own 22,515 shares valued at $743,000.
• Kulicke and Soffa Industries recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.205 per share, representing a 2.2% yield, to be paid on October 7th.

Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 19,632 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $647,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLIC. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,476,131 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $114,643,000 after buying an additional 197,619 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 6.1% during the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,699,897 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $89,043,000 after acquiring an additional 156,144 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 10.0% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,938,904 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $63,945,000 after acquiring an additional 176,792 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP lifted its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 16.0% in the first quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,351,392 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $44,569,000 after acquiring an additional 185,964 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 14.9% in the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,146,518 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $37,813,000 after acquiring an additional 148,793 shares during the period. 98.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Kulicke and Soffa Industries

In related news, SVP Nelson Munpun Wong sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.07, for a total transaction of $1,112,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 147,533 shares in the company, valued at $5,469,048.31. This represents a 16.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 3.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries stock traded up $0.43 on Friday, reaching $38.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 402,281 shares, compared to its average volume of 477,076. The company has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 477.63 and a beta of 1.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $35.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.43. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $26.63 and a 52-week high of $52.08.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $148.41 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $145.48 million. Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a negative return on equity of 1.06% and a net margin of 0.90%.The business's revenue was down 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.35 EPS. 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 Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.205 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 18th. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Kulicke and Soffa Industries's payout ratio is currently 1,025.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.33.

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.