ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Trading Down 1.3% – Should You Sell?

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) shares were down 1.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $662.50 and last traded at $663.32. Approximately 330,281 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 1,445,409 shares. The stock had previously closed at $671.97.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on ASML shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on ASML from $1,207.00 to $1,148.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Berenberg Bank raised shares of ASML to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of ASML from $1,300.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on ASML from $1,000.00 to $790.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered ASML from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $970.60.

ASML Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $263.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $739.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $870.11.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The semiconductor company reported $5.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.24 by $0.56. ASML had a net margin of 26.40% and a return on equity of 47.61%. The business had revenue of $8.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.66 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that ASML Holding will post 20.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 29th were issued a $1.407 dividend. This represents a $5.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 29th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.21%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ASML. Hilltop National Bank increased its holdings in shares of ASML by 1.0% in the second quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 975 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $997,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ASML by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 1,134 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,159,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in ASML by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 444 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $454,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. First Pacific Financial raised its position in ASML by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 1,121 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,146,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Finally, RMR Wealth Builders lifted its stake in ASML by 0.6% in the second quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 2,114 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,162,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.