Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) Short Interest Update

Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,490,000 shares, a drop of 17.3% from the March 31st total of 3,010,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 652,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.8 days. Approximately 4.8% of the company's shares are short sold.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 68.7% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,762,112 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $82,220,000 after buying an additional 717,832 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $24,109,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $22,134,000. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd grew its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 3,534.6% during the 1st quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 461,555 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $15,222,000 after purchasing an additional 448,856 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 286.1% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 423,208 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $19,747,000 after purchasing an additional 313,595 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.22% of the company's stock.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Stock Performance

NASDAQ:KLIC traded down $1.09 on Wednesday, reaching $30.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 744,941 shares, compared to its average volume of 550,398. The firm has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a PE ratio of 254.93 and a beta of 1.53. The business's 50-day moving average price is $33.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.51. Kulicke and Soffa Industries has a 1-year low of $26.63 and a 1-year high of $53.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.52) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19 by ($0.71). Kulicke and Soffa Industries had a net margin of 0.48% and a negative return on equity of 1.26%. The firm had revenue of $161.99 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $165.10 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.95) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Kulicke and Soffa Industries will post 0.93 EPS for the current year.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $0.205 per share. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. Kulicke and Soffa Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 683.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on KLIC shares. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $50.00 to $36.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com raised shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $53.00 price target on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $49.75.

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.