Saratoga Research & Investment Management Has $1.55 Million Position in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Saratoga Research & Investment Management reduced its position in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 1.1% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,593 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 18 shares during the period. Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s holdings in ASML were worth $1,546,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in ASML by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,977,359 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,767,464,000 after purchasing an additional 105,196 shares during the period. Sands Capital Management LLC raised its stake in ASML by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Sands Capital Management LLC now owns 1,617,083 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,224,002,000 after purchasing an additional 121,847 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of ASML by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,247,197 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $944,028,000 after acquiring an additional 32,623 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of ASML by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,173,324 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $888,112,000 after acquiring an additional 24,368 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of ASML by 15.3% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,146,157 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $867,549,000 after acquiring an additional 151,844 shares during the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ASML Stock Down 0.5 %

ASML stock traded down $5.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $1,022.73. 837,765 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,027,876. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market cap of $403.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.49. ASML Holding has a 1-year low of $563.99 and a 1-year high of $1,077.22. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $964.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $907.83.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The semiconductor company reported $3.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.54. The firm had revenue of $5.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.73 billion. ASML had a net margin of 27.23% and a return on equity of 56.99%. As a group, analysts anticipate that ASML Holding will post 20.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 29th were issued a dividend of $1.343 per share. This represents a $5.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 26th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on ASML shares. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on shares of ASML from $1,072.00 to $1,052.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of ASML in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of ASML from $1,150.00 to $1,185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,043.00.

ASML Profile

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.