ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Trading Down 1.7% – What’s Next?

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) traded down 1.7% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $724.07 and last traded at $726.73. 549,315 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 1,902,472 shares. The stock had previously closed at $739.13.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. DZ Bank raised shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Susquehanna cut their price target on ASML from $1,300.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of ASML in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price objective on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $937.00.

ASML Stock Down 1.5 %

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $724.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $769.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $286.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.53.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.67 by ($0.37). ASML had a net margin of 26.78% and a return on equity of 47.73%. As a group, equities analysts expect that ASML Holding will post 25.31 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th will be paid a dividend of $1.5855 per share. This is a boost from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 11th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.83%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ASML

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of ASML by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,186,222 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,654,921,000 after purchasing an additional 31,879 shares during the last quarter. Edgewood Management LLC boosted its stake in ASML by 3.3% during the third quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 2,226,971 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,855,624,000 after buying an additional 70,776 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in ASML by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,788,280 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,239,421,000 after acquiring an additional 31,231 shares during the last quarter. Windacre Partnership LLC raised its stake in shares of ASML by 4.0% in the third quarter. Windacre Partnership LLC now owns 664,100 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $553,361,000 after acquiring an additional 25,600 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of ASML by 94,079.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 491,618 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,096,410,000 after purchasing an additional 491,096 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

About ASML

ASML Holding N.V. develops, produces, markets, sells, and services advanced semiconductor equipment systems for chipmakers. It offers advanced semiconductor equipment systems, including lithography, metrology, and inspection systems. The company also provides extreme ultraviolet lithography systems; and deep ultraviolet lithography systems comprising immersion and dry lithography solutions to manufacture various range of semiconductor nodes and technologies.