Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) Upgraded at Needham & Company LLC

Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) was upgraded by stock analysts at Needham & Company LLC from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $55.00 target price on the semiconductor company’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 20.59% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com downgraded Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Craig Hallum dropped their target price on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.50.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Trading Down 3.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLIC opened at $45.61 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.49 billion, a P/E ratio of -37.08 and a beta of 1.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $44.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.36. Kulicke and Soffa Industries has a 12-month low of $38.20 and a 12-month high of $56.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, November 13th that permits the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor company to buy up to 11.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kulicke and Soffa Industries

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KLIC. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 137.5% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 715 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 226.3% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 783 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 17,075.0% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,374 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 1,366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $73,000. 98.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Company 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.