Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) Upgraded by Needham & Company LLC to Buy Rating

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

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on KLIC. StockNews.com downgraded Kulicke and Soffa Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Craig Hallum lowered their price objective on shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.50.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries Price Performance

KLIC opened at $45.61 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $44.00 and its 200 day moving average is $45.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.49 billion, a PE ratio of -37.08 and a beta of 1.38. Kulicke and Soffa Industries has a fifty-two week low of $38.20 and a fifty-two week high of $56.71.

Kulicke and Soffa Industries announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, November 13th that allows the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to purchase up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kulicke and Soffa Industries

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 11,212 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $564,000 after acquiring an additional 788 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,841,236 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $142,943,000 after acquiring an additional 128,026 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries by 133.9% during the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 156,958 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $7,897,000 after purchasing an additional 89,849 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries in the first quarter worth approximately $571,000. 98.22% of the stock is 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.