ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Down 0.7% – Here’s What Happened

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)’s stock price fell 0.7% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $693.44 and last traded at $698.36. 554,276 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average session volume of 1,515,131 shares. The stock had previously closed at $703.37.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ASML. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on ASML in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 target price on the stock. DZ Bank raised ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on shares of ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $937.00.

ASML Stock Down 2.1 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $733.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $742.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $271.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last released its quarterly 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, analysts forecast that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a $1.5855 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 11th. This is a boost from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.35%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Edgewood Management LLC grew its position in ASML by 43.1% in the 4th quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 3,186,667 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,208,615,000 after purchasing an additional 959,696 shares during the period. Amundi increased its position in shares of ASML by 4,880.5% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 335,284 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $247,019,000 after acquiring an additional 328,552 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of ASML by 53.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 807,257 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $559,494,000 after acquiring an additional 281,156 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in ASML in the 4th quarter valued at about $175,257,000. Finally, Fisher Funds Management LTD acquired a new position in ASML during the 4th quarter valued at about $137,386,000. 26.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.