Fisher Funds Management LTD Makes New Investment in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Fisher Funds Management LTD bought a new stake in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 198,478 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $137,386,000. ASML makes up approximately 3.3% of Fisher Funds Management LTD’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Fisher Funds Management LTD owned approximately 0.05% of ASML at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. raised its stake in shares of ASML by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 305 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $211,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in ASML by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,208 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,223,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. lifted its holdings in ASML by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 606 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $420,000 after buying an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Sunpointe LLC boosted its position in ASML by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Sunpointe LLC now owns 1,114 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $772,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in ASML by 46.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 47 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ASML shares. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on ASML in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price target on the stock. DZ Bank upgraded shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective on shares of ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $937.00.

ASML Stock Performance

Shares of ASML stock opened at $737.01 on Friday. 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 Holding has a 52 week low of $645.45 and a 52 week high of $1,110.09. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $732.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $758.80. The company has a market capitalization of $289.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.47.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.67 by ($0.37). ASML had a return on equity of 47.73% and a net margin of 26.78%. On average, analysts expect that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were given a dividend of $1.5855 per share. This is a boost from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 11th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.67%.

ASML Company 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.